UC-NRLF 


H  E 
llfcl 


SB    3fl 


George   Davidson 
1  fiP.R,!  01  1 


THE 


r 


-PROPOSED    UNION 


OF    THE 


TELEGRAPH  AND  POSTAL  SYSTEMS. 


STATEMENT 


OF    THE 


WESTERN  UNION  TELEGRAPH   COMPANY, 


CAMBRIDGE  : 
WELCH,    BIGELOW,    AND    COMPANY, 


PKIXTKHS   TO   THE    UNIVERSITY. 


1869. 


THE 


PROPOSED  UNION 


OF    THE 


TELEGRAPH  AND  POSTAL  SYSTEMS. 


STATEMENT 


OF  THE 


WESTERN  UNION  TELEGRAPH  COMPANY. 

\\ 


CAMBRIDGE: 
WELCH,    BIGELOW,   AND    COMPANY, 

PRINTERS  TO  THE   UNIVERSITY. 

1869. 


CONTENTS. 


REVIEW  OF  HON.  E.  B.  WASHBURNE'S  PAPER  ON  THE  UNION  OF 
THE   TELEGRAPH  AND  POSTAL   SYSTEMS. 

Page 

A  merited  Compliment  to  Professor  Morse 1 

Congressional  Aid       ..........  2 

Erroneous  Charges  against  the  American  Telegraph  System  ...  3 

Brief  Statement  of  Facts 4 

Statistics  of  the  Telegraph  in  Europe  and  America  for  the  year  1866, 

from  Official  Reports 5 

The  Complaint  of  Indifference  to  Public  Convenience  without  Foun- 
dation     ............  5 

Official  Statistics  of  the  Telegraphs  in  Europe  for  the  year  1866      .         .  7 
Statistics  of  the  Western  Union  Telegraph  Company,  of  the  United 
States,   and  of   the  Montreal    Telegraph   Company,   Dominion    of 

Canada,  for  the  year  ending  June  30,  1867 7 

The  asserted  Union  of  the  Postal  and  Telegraph  Systems  in  Europe 

an  Error 8 

The  Shortcomings  of  British  Telegraphs      ......  9 

The  Telegraph  System  of  the  United  States  Unparalleled  for  its  Extent 

and  Efficiency          ..........  10 

Asserted  Effect  of  Governmental  Control  on  Belgian  Telegraphs  .         .  11 

Early  Belgian  Rates  contrasted  with  American 12 

Natural  Increase  in  Telegraphy 13 

Unfortunate  Effects  of  Low  Rates  and  Competition    ....  15 

American  and  European  Rates  compared        .         .         .         .         .         .15 

The  Peculiarities  of  the  Belgian  Telegraph  Service     ....  17 

Belgian  Officials  acknowledge  the  Imperfections  of  their  System  .         .  18 

Instructive  History  of  Belgian  Telegraphs 19 

Singular  Idea  that  a  Small  Telegraph  System  is  more  Difficult  to  Manage 

than  a  Large  One .  20 

Necessity  for  the  Unification  of  the  Telegraph  System  .        .        .        .  22 


v  CONTENTS. 

Estimate  of  the  Cost  of  Building  Telegraph  Lines                ...  24 
Doubts  regarding  the  Estimates  of  Telegraph  Experts  as  to  Cost  of  Con- 
structing Lines 27 

Incorrect   Assertion  that   American    Telegraphs    are    not  constructed 

according  to  Specifications 29 

Cost  of  American  Telegraphs  estimated  by  European  Data     ...  30 
Value  of  Western  Union  Telegraph  Property,  based  on  European  data  32 
Erroneous  Estimate  of  the  Value  of  the  Western  Union  Telegraph  Com- 
pany's Property .         .         .  33 

The  Organization  of  the  Western  Union  Telegraph  Company      .        .  35 
Financial  Statistics  of  the  Western  Union  Telegraph  Company  .  36 
Stations,  Lines,  and  Employees  o'f  the  Western  Union  Telegraph  Com- 
pany     39 

English  and  American  Telegraphs  compared    , 40 

Acknowledged  Superiority  of  the  early  American  Service      .        .        .  41 

Remarkably  Low  Tariffs  of  the  early  American  Telegraphs         .        .  42 
No  Similarity  between  the  Telegraph  and  Postal  Systems       .        .         .43 

Collection  and  Delivery  of  Telegrams  by  Letter- Carriers  Impracticable  45 

Mr.  Washburne's  proposed  Experimental  Line 47 

London  District  Telegraph  Company      ..  "  .        .        .        .        .        .  50 

Telegraphs  under  Government  and  Private  Control  compared  .        .  51 

The  Telegraph  and  the  Press  .        .        . 52 


KEVIEW  OF  MR.  GARDINER  G.  HUBBARD'S  LETTER  TO  THE  POST- 
MASTER-GENERAL ON  THE  EUROPEAN  AND  AMERICAN 
SYSTEMS  OF  TELEGRAPH. 

Erroneous  Statements  relative  to  Belgian  Telegraphs  .        .        .        .  56 

Belgian  Telegrams  delivered  by  Post 58 

Want  of  Uniformity  in  Rates       .,..-. 58 

Assertion  that  Commercial  Messages  are  transmitted  at  a  Loss    .  61 

Correction  of  Erroneous  Statements      *.        .         .        .        .        .        .  62 

Tariffs  not  Increased  by  Consolidation  of  the  Lines     ....  63 

Erroneous  Assertion  that  a  Large  Proportion  of  the  Offices  are  at  Rail- 
road Stations  .         ....         .         .        .        ;        .         .         .  64 

American  and  European  Telegraph  Tariffs  compared     .        .        .        .  65 

Rules  of  the  European  Telegraphs      »                 66 

Rules  of  the  Western  Union  Telegraph  Company 66 

Statement  showing  the  Minimum  Rate  for  Telegrams  from  London  to 
Principal  Cities  in  Europe,  and  from  New  York  to  Principal  Cities  in 

America       .         .        .         .         ...        .         .         .         .         .  67 

Singular  Notions  of  Practical  Telegraphy 68 

Absurd  Theories  regarding  the  Working  Capacity  of  Telegraph  Lines    .  69 

Impossibility  of  Utilizing  the  Telegraph  Lines  by  Night  as  well  as  Day  70 


CONTENTS.  V 

Proposed  Incorporation  of  the  United  States  Postal  Telegraph  Company  72 

Messages  delivered  within  a  Mile  of  the  Office  free      ....  73 

European  Charges  for  delivering  Telegrams    ......  74 

Telegrams  to  be  placed  in  the  Street  Boxes 75 

Privileged  Persons  to  have  Priority  in  the  Use  of  the  Wires    ...  75 

Proposition  to  operate  Telegraphs  at  a  Loss,  and  Make  Money  by  it  76 

Speculative  Telegraph  Schemes      .         .         .         .         .         .         .         .  77 

More  Startling  Inventions  for  Rapid  Telegraphing       ....  78 

Erroneous  Table  of  European  Statistics  .......  79 

European  Telegrams  counted  Several  Times 82 

Labor  the  Principal  Element  of  Expense  in  operating  Telegraphs  .         .  82 

Prevailing  Error  of  all  Theorizers  on  the  Business  of  Telegraphing    .  83 
Statistics  of  Traffic  through  the  Atlantic  Cables  from  July  28,  1866,  to 

November  1,  1868                 .  » 86 


PROGRESS    OF    THE    ELECTRIC    TELEGRAPH   IN    AMERICA  AND 

EUROPE. 

The  United  States 87 

Proportion  of  Telegrams  to  Letters       .                 87 

Early  History  of  the  Telegraph  in  America    .         .         .         .         .         .  88 

Evils  arising  from  Separate  Organizations 89 

The  Unification  of  the  Telegraph  accomplished       .....  90 

Telegraph  Companies  in  the  United  States 91 

Statistics  of  the  Telegraph  in  the  Dominion  of  Canada    .        .        .        .  92 

Statement  showing  the  Progress  of  Telegraphy  in  Austria         .         .  93 

Statement  showing  the  Progress  of  Telegraphy  in  Belgium   ...  94 

Bavaria       ............  98 

Denmark 98 

Statement  showing  the  Progress  of  Telegraphy  in  Great  Britain  and 

Ireland 100 

Decrees  regulating  the  Use  of  the  Telegraph  in  France       .        .         .  102 

Peculiar  Character  of  the  French  Telegraph 103 

Statement  showing  the  Progress  of  Telegraphy  in  France          .        .  104 
Increase  in  Telegrams  not  due  to  Low  Rates  .        .        .        .        .        .104 

Greece 105 

Prussia    ......         I         ......  105 

Statement  showing  the  Progress  of  Telegraphy  in  Prussia   .         .         .  106 

Russia 106 

Switzerland 107 

Statement  showing  the  Progress  of  Telegraphy  in  Switzerland       .        .  109 

Royal  Decree  relating  to  Telegraphs  in  Spain 110 

Turkey Ill 


VI  CONTENTS. 


EEASONS   WHY  GOVERNMENT    SHOULD  NOT    ENTER  INTO    COM- 
PETITION WITH  THE  PEOPLE  IN  THE  OPERATION 
OF  THE  TELEGRAPH. 

Political  Reasons  why  Government  should  not  Control  the  Telegraph    .  114 

The  Post-Office  Department  not  Competent  to  manage  the  Telegraphs  .  114 

Government  assumes  no  Responsibility         ..        .         .         .         .  116 

The  Proposition  to  Erect  Competitive  Governmental  Telegraphs  Un- 
founded in  Public  Necessity      .         .         .        ,      *.       ,.       ..         .  117 

The  Telegraph  Bill  proposed  to  be  enacted  by  Congress  without  Na- 
tional Example        .        .        .        .        .        .        .        •        .        .  118 


REVIEW 


01- 


HON.  E.  B.  WASHBURNE'S  PAPER  ON  THE  UNION  OF 
THE  TELEGRAPH  AND  POSTAL  SYSTEMS. 


IN  the  second  session  of  the  Fortieth  Congress,  1868,  a  bill  was 
introduced  and  a  paper  submitted  by  Hon.  E.  B.  Washburne,  of 
Illinois,  relating  to  the  "  Union  of  the  Telegraph  and  Postal 
Systems "  in  the  United  States,  which  has  naturally  attracted 
public  attention,  and  especially  of  that  large  class  of  our  citizens 
who  are  identified  with  the  Telegraph  interests  of  the  country. 
The  paper  bears  upon  its  face  such  evident  marks  of  care,  and  the 
case  is  presented  with  so  much  earnestness  and  apparent  sincerity, 
notwithstanding  the  frequency  of  its  errors  and  the  illusory  char- 
acter of  its  appeals  to  the  practice  and  experience  of  foreign  nations, 
that  it  cannot  fail  to  produce  upon  the  public  rnind  an  unjust  im- 
pression that  the  usefulness  of  this  great  invention  is  injuriously 
restricted,  and  its  operations  unfaithfully  managed,  by  the  organi- 
zations having  it  in  control. 

O 

To  correct  these  erroneous  impressions  by  calmly  and  respect- 
fully criticising  the  statements  thus  presented,  and  proving  the 
honesty  and  fidelity  with  which  the  Telegraph  service  is  performed 
in  this  country,  is  the  object  of  this  paper. 

A  MERITED  COMPLIMENT  TO  PROFESSOR  MORSE. 

In  the  acknowledgment  made  by  Mr.  Washburne,  in  the 
opening  of  his  paper,  that  "  the  world  is  indebted  to  the  genius  of 
a  citizen  of  the  United  States  for, the  practical  development  of  the 
electric  telegraph  as  a  means  of  communication,"  we  heartily  con- 
cur. That  citizen  is  still  a  member  of  the  Company  to  which  his 
1 


great  discovery  gave  birth,  and  on  whose  success  he  largely 
depends  for  support.  To  it  he  gives  his  ripened  genius  and 
matured  wisdom,  justly  priding  himself  upon  the  success  of  his 
invention,  and  desiring  for  it  the  largest  and  widest  use. 

But  Professor  Morse  needs  more  than  the  simple  honor  of  making 
a  great  discovery  and  of  placing  it  at  the  disposal  of  his  fellow-men 
throughout  the  world,  and  when  it  is  considered  that  the  effect  of 
the  system  proposed  to  be  inaugurated  by  Mr.  Washburne's  bill 
would  be  the  inevitable  destruction  of  all  existing  telegraph  in- 
vestments, and  possibly  the  impoverishment  of  the  great  inventor 
himself,  the  compliment  seems  a  barren  one  indeed. 

CONGKESSIONAL  AID. 

Congress,  it  is  true,  aided  the  introduction  of  the  Telegraph  by 
an  appropriation  of  thirty  thousand  dollars  for  a  public  experiment 
and  test  of  its  capacity.  But  it  may  well  be  questioned  whether 
this  appropriation  was  not,  after  all,  an  injury  rather  than  a  benefit, 
both  to  the  inventor  and  the  people.  It  left  no  property  to  enrich 
its  possessors,  and  no  models  to  guide  them  in  erecting  new  struc- 
tures, while  it  was  obtained  by  sacrifices  which  have  cost  the 
inventor  infinite  sorrow,  and  clouded  a  score  of  years  with  litiga- 
tion. The  time  occupied  by  Congress  in  the  consideration  of  the 
offer  of  the  invention  to  government  for  one  hundred  thousand 
dollars  (which  was  rejected)  consumed  nearly  two  years  of  the 
patent,  and  exposed  the  inventor  to  the  endurance  of  a  most  an- 
noying uncertainty. 

Government,  however,  most  effectually  insured  its  .successful 
extension,  when,  contrary  to  the  practice  of  European  powers, 
it  declined  to  assume  the  control  of  the  Telegraph,  arid  referred 
its  inventor,  after  the  thorough  investigation  of  the  Postmasterr 
General,  to  the  people  as  the  proper  recipients  of  his  discovery. 
It  was  the  healthy  act  of  a  government  which  recognized  its  duty 
to  protect,  instead  of  absorbing,  the  enterprises  of  its  citizens. 
That  duty  is  as  clear  to-day1  as  it  was  then. 

When  government  rejected  the  control  and  ownership  of  the 
Telegraph,  although  offered  for  so  paltry  a  sum  by  the  inventor,  it 
was  accepted  by  the  people  as  a  legitimate  enterprise,  and  they 


3 

have  given  to  it  alFthe  capital,  skill,  and  labor  required  for  the 
fullest  development  of  its  usefulness. 

Although  many  years  elapsed  after  the  introduction  of  the 
Telegraph  in  this  countiy  during  which  it  maintained  but  a 
feeble  existence  through  numerous  weak  and  limited  organizations, 
that  rendered  the  business  expensive  and  precarious,  it  now  begins 
to  crystallize  into  strength  and  harmony ;  and  the  projectors  and 
promoters  of  the  enterprise  feel  that  they  have  a  right  to  expect 
the  fruit  of  their  labors,  in  the  proper  and  legitimate  return  which 
the  humblest  citizen  receives  for  his  work,  and  which  government 
was,  in  part  at  least,  organized  to  secure.  We  therefore  pronounce 
the  Washburne  bill  an  unwarranted  and  unjust  measure,  which, 
while  proposing  an  ostensible  public  good,  essays  to  provide  it  by 
the  destruction  of  vast  private  interests  for  which  it  proposes  no 
compensation. 


ERRONEOUS    CHARGES   AGAINST    THE    AMERICAN   TELEGRAPH 

SYSTEM. 

To  the  charges  made  by  Mr.  Washburne,  in  the  prefatory  sen- 
tences of  his  paper,  against  the  management  of  the  Telegraph 
system  of  the  United  States,  little  need  be  said.  They  are  with- 
out the  shadow  of  proof,  and  require  no  other  answer  than  an 
explicit  denial.  Yet  American  telegraph  companies  may  justly 
complain  that  a  public  man,  while  ostensibly  performing  a  service 
in  the  interests  of  the  people,  should  deem  it  necessary  to  traduce 
a  vast  interest  by  the  use  of  terms  so  broad  as  to  attract  to  it, 
even  without  proof  of  their  justice,  unwarranted  disparagement 
and  suspicion. 

Mr.  Washburne's  statement  that  "  the  telegraphic  system  has 
made  less  progress  toward  perfection,  and  has  been  practically 
of  less  value  to  the  masses  of  the  people  in  our  country,  than 
in  any  other  civilized  country  on  the  globe,"  is  so  sweepingly 
erroneous  as  to  excite  our  profound  astonishment,  which  is 
increased  by  the  still  broader  assertion  that,  "  while  in  nearly 
every  country  in  Europe  the  telegraph  has  become  a  speedy, 
certain,  and  economical  medium  of  communication,  the  inestimable 
benefits  of  which  are  extended  to  the  inhabitants  of  small  towns 


and  communes  as  well  as  to  the  great  centres  of  trade,  in  this 
country  telegraphic  communication  has  always  been  uncertain  and 
expensive,  and  limited  to  chief  towns  and  cities." 


BRIEF  STATEMENT  OF  FACTS. 

In  reply  to  the  above  we  desire  to  present  the  following  facts. 

The  population  of  Europe  at  the  last  authentic  census  was 
288,001,365,  nineteen  twentieths  of  which .  belonged  to  the  Cau- 
casian race.  It  contains  thirty-nine  cities,  each  possessing  more 
than  one  hundred  thousand  inhabitants,  and  the  accumulated 
wealth  of  nearly  two  thousand  years  of  civilization. 

The  United  States  has  a  population  of  only  31,148,047,  and 
contains  but  ten  cities  of  one  hundred  thousand  inhabitants,  while 
its  utmost  civilized  history  reaches  back  scarcely  two  and  a  half 
centuries,  and  the  accumulated  wealth  of  its  civilization  cannot 
average  fifty  years  throughout  its  cultivated  area. 

The  population  of  Europe  being  nearly  ten  times  greater  than 
that  of  the  United  States,  as  is  also  its  accumulations  of  years 
of  civilization,  while,  according  to  Mr.  Washburne,  its  telegraph 
facilities  vastly  outstrip  ours,  it  should,  of  course,  possess  far 
more  than  ten  times  the  number  of  telegraph  offices. 

But,  in  truth,  there  is  not  even  an  approximation  to  this  pro- 
vision of  telegraphic  convenience  based  on  population  ;  for  while 
the  United  States  alone  possess  4,126  telegraph  offices,  all  Europe 
contains  but  6,450,  of  which  2,151,  or  more  than  one  third  of  the 
whole  number,  belong  to  Great  Britain,  where  the  telegraph 
has  heretofore  been  free  from  government  control. 

It  is  significant  of  American  enterprise  that  continental  Europe, 
with  a  population  of  260,000,000,  possesses  but  one  hundred  and 
seventy-three  more  telegraph  offices  than  the  United  States,  with 
her  31,000,000  of  widely  scattered  people.-  While  in  the  United 
States  there  is  a  telegraph  office  to  every  7,549  of  its  inhabitants, 
in  continental  Europe  there  is  only  one  to  every  60,249 ! 

The  following  table  will  serve  to  show  the  proportion  of  tele- 
graph offices  to  population  in  the  principal  countries  of  Europe 
and  of  the  United  States,  the  number  of  miles  of  line,  and  amount 
of  telegraph  business  of  each. 


TABLE    A. 


Statistics  of  the  Telegraph  in  Europe  and  America  for  the  year  1866, 
from  official  reports. 


COUNTRIES. 

Number 
of 
Stations. 

Miles  of 
Line. 

Miles  of 
Wire. 

Total 
Number  of 
Messages 
Transmitted. 

Population.* 

Proportion  of 
Offices  to 
Population. 

Austria 

856 

24,618 

73,854 

2,507,472 

39,411,309 

1  to    46,311 

Belgium 

356 

2,187 

6,146 

1,128,005 

4,530,228 

1  to     12,416 

Bavaria 

2,115 

4,945 

Denmark 

89 

2,515 

308,150 

1,684,004 

1  to    18,921 

France 

1,209 

20,628 

68,687 

2,842,554 

38,302,625 

1  to    31,681 

Great  Britain) 
and  Ireland     ) 

2,151 

16,588 

80,466 

5,781,189 

29-,591,009 

1  to    13,750 

Italy 

529 

8,200 

20,120 

1,760,889 

24,550,845 

to    49,000 

Norway 

73 

269,375 

1,433,488 

to    19,773 

Prussia 

538 

18,386 

55,149 

1,964,003 

17,739,913 

to    32,955 

Russia 

308 

12,013 

22.214 

838,653 

68,224,832 

to  221,508 

Switzerland 

252 

1,858 

3,715 

668,916 

;  2,534,240 

to    10,000 

Spain 

142 

8,871 

17,743 

533,376 

16,302,625 

to  100,000 

United  States 

4,126 

62,782 

125,564 

12,904,770 

31,148,047 

to      7,549 

Dominion  of  j 
Canada         J 

382 

6,747 

8,935 

573,219 

3,976,224 

1  to    10,400 

In  large  sections  of  the  United  States  the  proportion  is  much 
greater.  Thus,  the  Pacific  States  embrace  an  area  of  600,000 
square  miles  ;  Belgium,  11,000.  The  former  provide  an  office  to' 
every  2,500  of  their  population ;  the  latter,  one  to  every  12,416. 
Thus,  the  Pacific  States  sustain  five  times  as  many  offices  in  pro- 
portion to  population  as  Belgium,  to  say  nothing  of  the  great  dis- 
parity in  the  condition  of  service  by  the  vast  range  of  wild  ter- 
ritory occupied  by  the  one,  and  the  fine  roads  and  cultivated  area 
of  the  other. 

In  view  of  the  facts  shown  in  the  preceding  table,  how  can  it  be 
said  that  in  America  the  telegraph  is  less  practically  provided  to 
the  people  than  in  any  other  civilized  country  on  the  globe  ? 

THE   COMPLAINT   OF   INDIFFERENCE    TO    PUBLIC   CONVENIENCE 
WITHOUT  FOUNDATION. 

"  Instead  of  an  auxiliary  to  the  postal  system,  controlled,  like  it,  by  the 
state,  sought,  like  it,  to  be  made  useful  to  the  great  masses  of  the  people 
without  regard  to  the  pecuniary  profit  to  be  secured,  as  in  nearly  every 
civilized  country  in  the  world,  we  see  the  system  in  this  country  in  the 
hands  of  rival  companies,  anxious  only  for  profit,  extending  their  lines 
only  to  prominent  places  where  such  profits  are  to  be  secured,  and  too  in- 
different to  the  public  convenience.  In  short,  the  popular  verdict  of  the 

*  From  the  Annual  Cyclopaedia.     New  York :  D.  Appleton  &  Co.    1868. 


6 

people  of  this  country,  if  it  could  be  heard,  would  be  that  the  telegraphic 
system,  in  view  of  what  it  is  in  other  countries  and  might  become  in  this, 
is  practically  a  failure." 

The  above  complaint  is  without  the  least  .foundation.  In  no 
country  in  the  world  is  there  so  vast  a  system  of  lines  under  one 
control  as  in  this  ;  in  no  country  is  the  business  done  so  well  or  so 
cheaply ;  and  nowhere  else  has  there  ever  been  so  earnest  an  en- 
deavor made  to  serve  the  people  faithfully  and  satisfactorily. 

A  great  majority  of  the  towns  in  this  country  having  even  less  than 
five  hundred  inhabitants  are  already  supplied  with  offices,  and  they 
are  rapidly  increasing.  During  the  past  two  and  a  half  years  more 
than  one  million  of  dollars  have  been  spent  by  the  Western  Union 
Telegraph  Company  alone  in  the  construction  of  new  lines,  and 
during  the  same  period  it  has  opened  more  than  eight  hundred 
new  offices.  This  it  is  constantly  doing,  as  much  to  satisfy  ex- 
isting public  wants  as  for  the  promotion  of  its  own  future  interest. 
Over  one  hundred  offices  have,  long  been  sustained  at  a  loss, 
because  needed  to  protect  the  lines  built  through  comparatively 
desert  regions  to  reach  distant  points  of  intercourse,  and  several 
hundred  more  are  maintained  which  barely  pay  expenses.  In  fact, 
it  is  a  standing  rule  of  the  company  to  open  and  maintain  a  tele- 
graph office  at  all  places  in  the  United  States  reached  by  its  lines, 
on  a  guaranty  that  the  receipts  shall  be  equal  to  the  necessary 
expenses ;  and,  by  associating  the  duties  of  the  telegraphic  service 
with  other  productive  labor,  they  are  often  rendered  extremely 
light.  It  ajso  offers  to  extend  its  lines  to  any  place  not  reached  by 
existing  lines,  where  the  inhabitants  will  advance  the  cost  of  build- 
ing them,  the  money  so  advanced  to  be  refunded  to  the  contributors 
in  telegraphing  at  ordinary  tariffs.  Under  this  arrangement  a 
large  number  of  offices  have  been  opened  and  extensive  lines  built, 
to  the  satisfaction  of  all  parties. 

Into  such  arrangements  the  government  could  not  enter  with 
any  similar  rapidity,  or  by  so  healthy  and  economic  processes  ac- 
complish a  like  amount  of  substantial  benefit  to  the  people.  The 
fact  that  there  is  scarcely  a  community  to  be  found  anywhere  in 
America  where  the  people  are  unable  to  meet  these  offers  of  the 
Telegraph  Company,  is  the  best  reason  why  government  should 
not  furnish  at  public  expense  what  the  people  are  so  able  to  pro- 
vide for  themselves. 


In  reply  to  the  statement  that  our  company  is  anxious  only  for 
profit,  and  that  its  charges  are  exorbitant  as  compared  with  those 
of  other  countries,  we  respectfully  call  attention  to  the  follow- 
ing table,  showing  the  average  cost  of  telegrams  in  Europe  and 
America  for  the  year  1866. 

AVERAGE   COST   OF  TELEGRAMS  IN  EUROPE  AND  AMERICA 

FOR  1866. 

Official  Statistics  of  the  Telegraphs  in  Europe  for  the  Year  1866. 


Name  of  Country 
or  Company. 

Total  Num- 
ber of  Mes- 
sages   trans- 
mitted, in- 
cluding in- 
land, inter- 
national, 
and    transit. 

Receipts. 

Value  in  U.  S. 
Gold  Coin. 

Value  in 
U.S.  Currency.* 

!  Austria  .     .     . 

2,507,472    Florins         1.644.742  X  80.48    = 

$  789.476.16 

$1.168,424.71 

Belgium      .     . 

1,128,005 

Francs            931,112  X     0.19    = 

182:611.28 

270,264.69 

Bavaria  .     .     . 

Florins           322,886  X     0.41    = 

102,383.26 

195,927.22 

;  Denmark     .     . 

308,150 

Dollars           308,150  X     1.09    = 

335,883.50 

497,107.58 

France    .     .     . 

2,507,472 

Francs         7,707,590  X     0.19    = 

1,464,442.10 

2,167,374.30 

Great  Britain 

and  Ireland 

Italy  .... 

5,781,189 

1,760,889 

£  sterling      512,707  X      4  86   = 
Lire             4,120,311  X      0.19    = 

2,491,756.02 
782,859.09 

3,687,798.90 
1,158,631.45 

Norway  . 

269,375 

Dollars           343,645  X     1.09    = 

374,573.15 

554,368.26 

Prussia  .     .     . 
Russia    .     .     . 

Switzerland     . 

1,984,003 
838,653 
668,916 

Thalers       1,275,785  X      0.72    = 
Roubles      1,872,659  x      0.77*  = 
Francs           684,471  X      0.19    = 

918,565.00 
1,451,310.72 
130,049.49 

1,359,476.20 
2,147,939.86 
192,473.24 

Spain      .     .     . 

533,376 

Dollars          554,475  X      1.04*  = 

576,654.00 

853,447.92 

Submarine  Tel- 

egraph Co.  . 

410,760 

£  sterling     .  60,368  X      4.86   = 

293,388.48 

434,214.95 

Malta  &  Alex- 

andria T.  Co. 

28,067 

£  sterling        52,142  X      4.86   = 

253,410.12 

375,046.97 

Mediterranean 

Extension  Tel- 

egraph Co.  . 

77,400 

£  sterling       31,200  X      4.86   = 

151,632.00 

224,415.36 

18,683,727 

$10,328,994.37        $15,286,911.61 

Average  cost  of  telegrams  in  Europe 


814  cents. 


Statistics  of  the  Western  Union  Telegraph  Company  of  the  United  States 
and  of  the  Montreal  Telegraph  Company,  Dominion  of  Canada,  for  the 
year  ending  Jane  30,  1867. 


Name  of  Company. 

Total  Number 
of  Messages. 

Receipts. 

United  States 
Currency. 

Western  Union  Tele- 
graph Company 
Montreal  Telegraph 
Company 

10,067,768  1 
573,219 

$5,738,627.96 
381,840.00 

$  258,000  gold  = 

Average  cost  of  telegrams  in  the  United  States  57  cents. 
Average  cost  of  telegrams  in  the  Dominion  of  Canada     .         .         .         66  cents. 

*  The  Commercial  and  Financial  Chronicle  gives  the  lowest  price  of  gold  in  1866 
as  1241,  and  the  highest  167$,  making  the  average  148,  which  we  have  adopted  as  the 
standard  value  for  that  year. 

t  These  are  exclusive  of  railroad  messages,  of  which  this  company  sends  many 
millions  per  annum.  In  fact,  the  safety  of  all  the  roads  in  the  United  States  is  largely 
due  to  the  free  use  of  our  wires  in  running  trains. 


8 

The  total  receipts  of  the  Western  Union  Telegraph  Company 
for  the  above  year  were  $  6,568,925.36  ;  but  of  this  amount 
$521,509  were  received  for  transmitting  regular  press  reports 
on  contract,  and  $308,788.40  from  other  sources,  —  leaving  only 
$5,738,627.96  for  telegrams. 

Of  the  10,067,768  messages  sent  during  the  year,,  8,004,770 
were  on  commercial  and  social  matters,  and  2,062,998  containing 
special  press  news,  the  latter  amounting  to  75,359,670  words. 

Of  '  the  regular  reports  there  were  delivered  to  the  press 
294,503,630  words,  which,  allowing  20  words  to  each  message,  — 
the  European  standard,  —  would  amount  to  14,725,181  telegrams, 
in  addition  to  the  number  given  in  the  table.  The  average  tele- 
graphic tolls  on  these  reports  were  three  and  one  half  cents  for  a 
message  of  20  words,  or  one  and  seven  tenths  of  a  mill  per  word. 

THE    ASSERTED    UNION    OF   THE    POSTAL   AND    TELEGRAPH 
SYSTEMS  IN  EUROPE  AN  ERROR. 

In  referring  to  the  action  of  European  governments,  in  their 
early  recognition  of  the  telegraph  system,  Mr.  Washburne  says :  — 

"  At  once,  after  the  invention  and  successful  establishment  of  electric 
telegraphs,  every  government  in  Europe  where  lines  were  built,  except 
that  of  Great  Britain,  established  a  telegraphic  system  in  connection  with 
its  postal  system.  Anticipating,  as  they  might  well  do,  that  in  private 
hands  it  might  be  so  constructed  as  to  draw  to  it,  by  its  speed,  safety,  and 
economy,  a  large  proportion  of  the  correspondence,  and  thus  become  a 
rival  of  the  post,  these  governments,  acting  in  the  interests  of  the  people, 
have  made  the  system  part  and  parcel  of  the  postal  system,  and  have 
thrown  around  it  all  the  safeguards  which  in  every  civilized  country  the 
postal  system  enjoys." 

The  above  statement,  with  the  exception  of  that  portion  printed 
in  italics,  is  remarkably  incorrect. 

In  no  country  in  Europe  does  it  appear  that  the  telegraphic 
administration  is  connected  with  the  post-office.*  In  France  and 
Spain  the  telegraphs  are  under  the  control  of  the  Minister  of 
the  Interior.  In  Russia,  Prussia,  and  Italy  they  belong  to  the 
Ministry  of  Public  Works.  In  Belgium  the  telegraph,  railways, 
and  the  post-office  form  a  general  division  under  the  Minister  of 

*  Telegraphic  Journal,  (London:  Truscott,  Son,  &  Simmons,)  Volume  XI. 
page  131. 


Public  Works,  but  are  kept  distinct.  In  Austria  the  administra- 
tions of  the  telegraphs  and  the  post-office  were  at  one  time  united, 
but  it  was  found  expedient  to  separate  them.  In  Switzerland  the 
telegraphic  organization  is  nearly  the  same  as  Prussia's  ;  the  post- 
office,  customs,  and  private  establishments  supply  the  elements 
of  an  auxiliary  staff,  but  all  the  persons  employed  in  the  trans- 
mission or  delivery  of  telegrams  depend  on  the  administration  of 
Telegraphs  for  their  compensation,  and  in  the  annual  budget  an 
appropriation  is  made  for  that  service  distinct  from  the  post. 

An  effort  was  made  in  France  in  1864  to  consolidate  the  post- 
office  and  telegraph  service,  but,  owing  to  the  strong  opposition 
evinced  on  the  part  of  the  chief  functionaries  of  both  services 
to  such  amalgamation,  it  was  relinquished. 

It  was  not  until  several  years  after  the  introduction  of  the  electric 
telegraph  in  America  that  it  was  opened  to  the  people  by  any 
European  government.  Even  in  France  the  electric  telegraph  was 
established  as  late  as  1851,  and  its  spread  throughout  the  empire 
was  exceedingly  slow.  The  semaphore  telegraph,  a  defective  and 
inefficient  system  of  conveying  intelligence  by  the  exhibition 
of  signals,  —  introduced  by  Napoleon  at  the  beginning  of  the 
present  century,  —  was  still  in  use,  and,  notwithstanding  the  mani- 
fest advantages  of  the  electric  telegraph,  as  shown  by  Arago  to 
the  House  of  Deputies,  government  long  refused  to  employ  it,  and, 
when  finally  adopted,  it  was  for  some  time  used  in  connection 
with  the  old  system. 

THE  SHORTCOMINGS  OF  BRITISH  TELEGRAPHS. 
Mr.  AVashburne  says  of  the  British  telegraph:  — 

"  In  Great  Britain,  as  in  the  United  States,  the  telegraph  was  left  to 
private  enterprise  and  competition.  Only  a  few  weeks  since,  after  a 
twenty  years'  trial  of  the  system  in  the  hands  of  private  companies,  the 
people  of  the  British  islands,  with  singular  unanimity,  demanded  to  have 
the  telegraphic  system  placed  under  the  control  of  the  postal  authorities, 
and  a  bill  was  introduced  by  the  present  government  for  that  purpose." 

It  is  complained  of  Great  Britain,  which  provides  one  quarter  of 
all  the  telegraph  offices  in  Europe,  that  the  telegraph  companies 
there  have  left  eighty-eight  places  in  England  and  Wales  having  a 
population  of  two  thousand  and  upwards,  and  even  whole  districts, 
without  an  office. 


10 

Whatever  may  be  true  of  the  meagreness  of  the  provision  of 
telegraphic  facilities  by  English  companies,  and  which  these  com- 
panies vigorously  deny,  no  such  complaint  can,  -with  justice,  be 
made  in  the  United  States,  notwithstanding  the  vast  ranges  of  ter- 
ritory which  must  be  traversed  to  meet  the  communities  which  need 
and  ask  for  them. 

Without  intending  any  disrespect  to  the  postal  authorities  of  the 
United  States,  it  may  be  said  that  the  post-office  system  of  Great 
Britain,  because  of  the  superior  character  of  the  control  which  long 
and  careful  study  has  enabled  it  to  secure,  is  far  in  advance  of  our 
own.  In  fact,  there  is  nothing  more  apparent  to  an  English  visitor 
than  the  low  status  of  our  postal  arrangements,  as  compared  wi^h 
that  of  his  own  country.  It  is  natural,  therefore,  seeing  the  postal 
system  so  admirably  managed,  that  English  merchants,  whose 
tendencies  are  all  toward  governmental  direction  in  matters  of  this 
character,*  should  desire  to  see  the  experiment  of  a  similar  control 
of  the  telegraph.  In  fact,  it  is  only  this  class  of  citizens  who  have 
asked  for  the  change,  the  memorial  having  gone  solely  from  the 
different  Chambers  of  Commerce  throughout  the  kingdom,  no  ap- 
peal on  the  subject  having  ever  been  made  to  or  by  the  people  of 
Great  Britain,  and  therefore  the  assertion  that  the  people  with 
singular  unanimity  demanded  it  is  not  sustained  by  the  facts. 

THE  TELEGRAPH  SYSTEM   OF   THE  .UNITED    STATES   UNPARAL- 
LELED FOR  ITS  EXTENT  AND  EFFICIENCY. 

Mr.  Washburne  says,  "  There  is  abundant  reason  to  believe 
that  the  telegraphic  system  of  Great  Britain,  which  is  declared  a 
failure  on  such  high  authority,  is,  in  all  respects,  greatly  superior 
to  our  own  "  ;  but  he  fails  to  give  any  of  his  reasons  for  this  belief, 
and  we  are  compelled  to  assert  that  it  has  no  intelligent  explana- 
tion except  in  a  strangely  morbid  hostility  to  this  company,  which 
exhibits  itself  on  every  offered  occasion.  In  all  respects  the 
telegraph  lines  of  this  country  are  equal  .to  those  of  any  other,  and 
in  some  important  ones  superior.  They  extend  from  the  Gulf  of 
St.  Lawrence  to  the  Gulf  of  Mexico,  and  from  the  Atlantic  to  the 
Pacific  Ocean,  connecting  in  one  unbroken  chain  more  than  four 

*  Witness  the  proposition  recently  so  much  discussed  in  England,  that  the  govern- 
ment should  assume  control  of  the  railways  also. 


11 

thousand  cities  and  villages,  forming  a  .system  by  which  every 
event  of  importance  happening  in  any  section  of  our  vast  territorial 
limits  is  published  within  a  few  hours  in  every  other  ;  through 
which  verbatim  reports  of  the  speeches  in  Congress  are  transmitted 
from  the  capital  to  the  metropolis,  and  full  abstracts  of  them  to 
every  considerable  town  in  the  nation,  on  the  day  of  their  delivery  ; 
which  supplies  the  metropolitan  journals  with  more  telegraphic 
news  every  day  than  is  contained  in  the  combined  press  despatches 
of  Europe.  Such  a  system,  in  its  vastness,  skilful  manipulation,  and 
the  rapidity  of  its  unceasing  development,  we  believe  merits  the 
public  approbation,  and  is  not  unworthy  of  the  American  name. 

Our  system  of  telegraphy  is  unique.  Nowhere  else  can  there 
be  found  such  an  extent  of  lines  under  one  control.  The  lines 
of  the  Western  Union  Telegraph  Company,  extending  throughout 
the  United  States  and  portions  of  the  Dominion  of  Canada,  enables 
it  to  transmit  messages  between  every  section  of  the  country,  with- 
out undergoing  the  delay  of  checking  or  booking  at  intermediate 
points  ;  and  between  most  of  the  large  cities  without  retransmis- 
sion. This  work,  over  a  territory  so  vast,  although  only  two 
years  have  elapsed  since  the  confederation  of  lines  was  effected 
which  made  it  possible,  is  fast  assuming,  under  increased  care  and 
enlarged  experience,  the  certainty  and  uniformity  of  mechanism. 
In  all  its  effective  features,  the  world  may  safely  be  challenged  to 
produce  anything  to  compare  with  it.  The  extent  of  lines  and 
wire  belonging  to  the  Western  Union  Telegraph  Company  is  more 
than  twice  that  of  France,  three  times  greater  than  that  of  Prussia, 
and  equals  the  aggregated  systems  of  Austria,  Prussia,  and  the 
lesser  German  States,  Italy,  Spain,  Belgium,  and  Switzerland, 
and  it  is  increasing  in  larger  ratio  than  any  European  system. 
The  Western  Union  Telegraph  Company  alone  has  added  to  its 
lines,  during  the  year  1868,  more  than  five  thousand  miles  of  wire, 
or  as  much  as  the  entire  system  of  Belgium,  leaving  unsatisfied 
demands  for  an  equal  extension  in  the  year  to  come. 

ASSERTED   EFFECT   OF    GOVERNMENTAL  CONTROL  ON  BELGIAN 

TELEGRAPHS. 

Mr.  Washburne  says  :  — 

"In  Belgium,  where  the  telegraph  has  always  been  under  the  control  of 


12 

the  government,  the  charge  for  telegraphing  twenty  words  throughout  the 
kingdom  is  half  a  franc,  or,  say  ten  cents  of  our  money.  In  Switzerland 
the  charge  is  the  same.  In  both  these  countries  offices  are  opened  in 
nearly  every  town  and  village ;  in  both  telegraphing  is  reliable  and  cer- 
tain ;  complaints  of  delays  and  errors  are  almost  unknown,  and  the  lines 
in  both  countries  yield  large  profits* 

"  In  Belgium,  in  the  year  1853,  with  an  average  charge  of  5  francs  and 
7  centimes,  or  say  $1.02  for  twenty  words  to  any  part  of  the  kingdom, 
the  number  of  messages  sent  was  52,050,  yielding,  francs,  265,536.  In 
the  year  1866,  with  the  charge  reduced  to  about  17  cents  for  twenty 
words,  the  number  of  messages  had  increased  to  1,128,005,  yielding, 
francs,  962,213.  The  same  remarkable  increase  is  found  tn  the  statistics 
of  the  telegraphic  system  of  all  countries  where  the  telegraph  is  under 
government  control." 

If  by  the  latter  clause  of  this  statement  it  is  designed  to  convey 
the  idea  that  government  control,  per  se,  stimulates  the  use  of  the 
telegraph,  or  that  even  a  reduction  of  rates,  without  this  control,  is 
incapable  of  producing  this  result,  it  may  justly  be  challenged  as 
utterly  unsustained  by  the  telegraphic  experience  of  this  country. 
The  coupling  together  of  these  two  influences  seems  designed  to 
prove  that  the  one  necessarily  involves  the  other,  whereas  the  ques- 
tion of  rate  is  altogether  independent  of  management,  whether 
government  or  individual. 

EARLY  BELGIAN  KATES  CONTRASTED  WITH  AMERICAN. 

Respecting  the  Belgian  tariff  of  1853,  of  $1.02  in  gold  per  mes- 
sage, for  a  distance  not  exceeding  fifty  miles,  it  must  be  regarded 
as  prohibitory,  except  to  those  whose  necessities  compelled  its  use. 
The  American  charge  at  the  same  period  for  even  greater  dis- 
tances was  twenty-five  cents.  Instead,  therefore,  of  any  surprise 
at  the  comparatively  limited  use  of  the  telegraph  by  the  Belgian 
people  under  the  circumstances,  it  may  well  be  regarded  as  ex- 
traordinary that  it  was  used  so  much. 

Had  private  companies  in  the  United  States  attempted  to  impose 
such  a  tariff  at  the  period  named,  public  opinion  would  have  com- 
pelled an  immediate  reduction.  While  there  can  be  no  doubt  that, 
within  certain  limits,  a  diminished  tariff  will  usually  be  followed  by 
an  increase  in  the  number  of  messages,  experience  has  demon- 
strated that  this  cannot  be  relied  on  as  invariably  true,  except 

*  See  official  acknowledgment  of  inefficiency  on  pages  18  and  19;  also,  on  page 
96,  an  admitted  loss  in  performing  the  service  at  established  rates. 


13 

where  the  charge  has  been  unreasonable  or  exorbitant.  It  must 
be  remembered  that,  when  a  tariff  has  been  reduced  one  half, 
there  must  be  an  increase  of  more  than  one  hundred  per  cent  in 
the  number  of  despatches,  to  yield  the  same  revenue,  meet  the  cost 
of  added  labor,  and  provide  the  necessary  additional  means  of 
transmission.  So  great  an  addition  in  the  number  of  messages, 
unattended  with  a  corresponding  increase  of  wires  and  operators, 
would  result  in  such  delay  and  inaccuracy  as  to  render  the  service 
of  no  value. 

NATURAL  INCREASE  IN  TELEGRAPHY. 

It  should  be  remembered,  too,  that  an  increase  follows  the  supply 
of  more  ample  facilities,  when  these  have  been  inadequate  to  the 
wants  of  the  communities  for  which  they  are  provided. 

There  is  also  a  large  natural  increase,  altogether  irrespective  of 
the  charges  for  transmission,  which  must  be  allowed  for,  before  the 
legitimate  effect  of  the  inducements  presented  by  cheapness,  or 
the  opportunities  furnished  by  the  multiplication  of  wires  or  in- 
creased capacity  in  the  machinery,  can  be  estimated.  Thus,  in 
December,  1848,  which  in  the  United  States  bears  a  fair  com- 
parison with  Belgium  in  1852  as  to  date  of  telegraphic  intro- 
duction, at  the  office  in  Buffalo,  N.  Y.,  the  receipts  amounted  to 
$380.54;  while  in  the  same  month  of  1867,  with  no  decrease  in 
the  tariff,  the  receipts  were  85,392.07,  —  an  increase  of  over  1,600 
per  cent,  and  exceeding  by  400  per  cent  that  which  in  Belgium 
was  caused,  as  claimed,  by  reducing  the  tariff  from  $1.02  to  17 
cents,  but  which,  in  Buffalo,  resulted  from  simple  natural  increase 
caused  by  the  growth  of  the  countiy  and  enlarged  telegraphic 
facilities.  The  annual  gross  receipts  of  the  Magnetic  Telegraph 
Company,  extending  between  New  York  and  Washington,  were 
as  follows :  — 

1847, $32,810 

1848, 52,252 

1849, 63,367 

1850, 61,383 

1851, 67,737 

1852, 103,232 

Up  to  the  close  of  1848  the  above  company  had  a  monopoly  of 


14 

the  telegraph  service  between  these  two  cities,  but  in  March,  1849, 
the   House   Printing  Line  commenced   operations  between  New 
York  and -Philadelphia,  and,  together  with  Bain's  Chemical  Tele- 
graph, was  continued  through  to  Washington  in  the  autumn   of 
that  year,  so  that  from  1848  to  1852  the  above  statement  only 
shows  the  receipts  of  one  of  the  three  lines  doing  business  between 
these  places.     If  the  receipts  of  the  other  two  companies  were  as 
large,  it  exhibits  the  remarkable  increase  in  the  amount  of  business 
done,  in  five  years,  of  more  than  900  per  cent,  without  any  reduc- 
tion in  rates. 

The  number  of  messages  transmitted  by  the  Magnetic  Com- 
pany in  1852  was  253,857,  at  an  average  cost,  according  to  the 
receipts,  of  forty  cents  each. 

The  average  cost  of  the  French  telegrams  for  the'  same  year, 
according  to  the  official  tables  furnished  by  Mr.  Washburne,  was 
11.28  francs,  or  $2.25  each. 

For  the  year  ending  November  1,  1868,  the   Western  Union 
Telegraph  Company  transmitted  over  the  same  territory  embraced 
by  the  lines  of  the   Magnetic  Company  in  1852,  1,556,004  mes- 
sages, the  gross  receipts  upon  \vhich  were  $546,262.05,  being  an 
average   of  thirty-five  cents  per  message.     There  are  two  rival 
companies  operating  lines  between  New  York  and  Washington  at 
the  present  time,  so  that  the  comparison  between  the  business  for 
the  past  year  and  that  of  the  previous  year  above  given  is  quite 
complete. 

The  gross  receipts  of  the  New  York  and  Boston  Magnetic  Tele- 
graph Association  for  the  year  ending 

July  31,  1848,  were          .         .         .        .         ..     $34,835.14 

"   1853,  «   .    .    .    .   ,.    .  82,214.16 

"   1854,  "    "..    .   *.-  •  .    .    79,683.73 
"   1855,  "......  101,307.98 

"   1856,  «     .    .   V   .    .   102,151.78 
"   1857,  "   .    .    .    .    .    .  103,134.06 

*'   1858,  «     .  ,   .    .....    98,097.73 

«   1859,  «   .   '.'   .  ~   .  •  .    .  96,136.06 

In  1848  the  above  company  had  a  monopoly  of  the  business  be- 
tween these  places,  but  in  1849  two  rival  companies  constructed 
lines  over  this  route  and  divided  the  business  with  it. 


15 

In  1848  the  tariff  between  New  York  and  Boston  was  fifty  cents 
for  the  first  ten  words,  and  three  cents  for  each  added  word;  and 
to  intermediate  points  twenty -five  cents  for  the  first  ten  words,  and 
two  cents  for  each  added  word. 

UNFORTUNATE  EFFECTS  OF  LOW  RATES  AND  COMPETITION. 

In  1849  the  rate  was  reduced  between  New  York  and  Boston  to 
thirty  cents,  in  1850  to  twenty  cents,  and  in  1852  to  ten  cents. 
None  of  the  lines,  however,  paid  their  working  expenses  from  the 
time  of  their  construction  up  to  1853.  Even  in  1848,  when  there 
was  no  opposition,  the  expenses  exceeded  the  receipts  by  $1,199.00. 
One  of  the  three  lines  was  sold  at  public  auction  twice  within  three 
years  after  its  construction,  to  pay  the  debts  incurred  in  operating 
it.  In  1853  two  of  the  lines  were  united  under  one  control,  and 
an  amicable  arrangement  entered  into  between  the  two  remaining 
companies,  by  which  the  rates  were  advanced  approximately  to 
those  of  1848,  and  they  remained  unchanged  for  the  next  ten  years. 

AMERICAN  AND  EUROPEAN  RATES  COMPARED. 

In  1851,  when  the  tariff  between  New  York  and  Boston  was 
twenty  cents,  the  average  French  rate  was  $1.56,  and  the  Bel- 
gian, for  less  than  one  third  the  distance,  $1.56. 

In  1852,  New  York  and  Boston,  tariff,      .         .  .  10  cents. 

"     French,  average  "      .  $  2.25      " 

"     Prussian,      "  ."....        2.35      " 

«       ~R A! rri an  "  "  for  less  than  one  third        1    91         « 

.Belgian,  .  the  distance,  *-^* 

"     Austrian,       "  "          .         .         .         .         1.55  « 

1866,  New  York  and  Boston,     " 30  « 

"     French,  average, 83  " 

"     Prussian,       «  65  « 

"     Belgian,        «  ...       *ll%*$£££*M      .25  " 

"     Austrian,        " 46  " 

When  the  Belgian  lines  were  opened  to  the  public,  an  act  of  the 
legislature,  dated  March  15,  1851,  established  a  charge  of  2^  francs  for 
a  message  of  twenty  words,  if  transmitted  within  a  circle  of  75  kilometres 
(i.e.  50  cents  in  gold  for  a  distance  of  about  46£  miles),  and  five  francs 
(one  dollar  gold)  for  any  distance  beyond  the  limit  of  75  kilometres. 


16 

The  increase  from  52,050  messages  in  Belgium  in  1853  to 
1,128,005  in  1866  is,  no  doubt,  in  part  justly  attributable  to  the 
reduction  of  the  prohibitory  tariff  of  the  former  year,  but  it  is  not 
greater  or  more  remarkable  than  the  increase  during  the  same 
period  in  America,  where  no  reduction  from  the  early  rates  has 
been  made,  and  where,  nevertheless,  the  business  has  improved 
year  by  year  until  it  has  grown  into  its  present  volume,  exceeding 
that  of  any  nation  on  the  globe,  on  whatever  basis  the  comparison 
be  placed. 

Belgium  transmitted  14,025  messages  in  1851  and  52,050  in 
1853,  being  an  increase  of  nearly  400  per  cent  in  three  years, 
although  the  tariff  had  been  reduced  less  than  20  per  cent.  From 
1853  to  1862  there,  was  an  increase  of  over  500  per  cent,  with 
a  reduction  of  tariff  of  about  52  per  cent.  From  1862  to  1867 
there  was  an  increase  of  less  than  400  per  cent,  although  the 
average  tariff  had  been  reduced  from  2.07  to  0.85  francs,  or 
about  60  per  cent. 

Other  suggestive  illustrations  are  contained  in  the  tables  fur- 
nished by  Mr.  Washburne.  Thus,  in  Switzerland,  in  1853,  at 
an  average  cost  of  1.55  francs  per  message,  the  number  sent  was 
82,586.  In  1854,  at  an  average  cost  of  1.62  francs,  129,167  were 
sent,  showing  an  increase  of  46,581  messages  at  a  higher  tariff. 
In  1855,  when  the  cost  per  message  was  almost  identical  with 
that  of  1853,  the  number  had  increased  to  162,851,  or  about  100 
per  cent.  In  1859,  when  the  cost  of  messages  was  1.48,  as  com- 
pared with  1.35  in  1858,  the  number  had  increased  from  247,102 
to  286,876,  and  in  1861,  at  the  average  charge  of  1859,  had  in- 
creased from  286,876  to  333,933.  In  1857  and  1862  the  charges 
were  exactly  alike,  yet  the  increase  in  the  number  of  messages  in 
the  latter  year  was  113,288,  or  over  43  per  cent  over  the  former. 
The  tables  furnished  by  other  countries  show  similar  results.  In 
Prussia,  in  1852,  48,751  messages  were  sent  at  an  average  cost 
of  2.35,  while  in  1858,  at  a  cost  increased  to  2.95,  247,292  mes- 
sages were  sent,  or  an  increase  of  over  400  per  cent. 

The  effect  of  the  policies  of  the  two  nations  thus  shown  to  be  so 
dissimilar  are  instructive. 

When  Belgium,  finding  it  necessary  to  reduce  her  tariff  to  one 
franc,  thereby  first  attempted  to  popularize  the  use  of  the  telegraph, 


it  was  done,  notwithstanding  all  its  advantages  of  free  rents, 
absence  of  taxes,  and  labor  vastly  cheaper  than  in  the  United 
States,  at  a  loss  to  the  state  of  41,417.19  francs.  And  when, 
upon  the  idea  that  a  still  lower  tariff  might  so  develop  the  public 
use  of  the  lines  as  to  render  them  self-sustaining,  the  Belgian 
government  in  1866  reduced  the  tariff  one  half,  its  expenditures 
were  increased  thereby  from  653,280  francs  in  1863  to  1,217,496 
francs,  entailing  a  loss  of  255,282,000  francs,  as  shown  by  Mr. 
Washburne's  report.  In  the  United  States,  by  keeping  the  tariff 
at  the  lowest  paying  rates,  the  system  has  been  extended  to  every 
part  of  the  country,  touching  the  extreme  limits  of  civilization, 
and  its  realm  of  usefulness  is  yearly  increasing. 

THE   PECULIARITIES  OF  THE  BELGIAN   TELEGRAPH   SERVICE. 

The  telegraph  business  of  Belgium  is  peculiar.  Ilalf  of  it  only 
can  be  said  to  be  Belgian  at  all,  the  other  half  being  messages  in 
transit,  or  international,  which  are  sent  at  comparatively  little  cost, 
and  for  the  transmission  of  which  it  makes  terms  with  other  nations. 
On  the  inland  or  Belgium  business  proper,  the  only  class  which  can 
with  any  propriety  be  used  in  the  argument  in  hand,  there  was, 
as  has  been  seen,  a  loss  in  1866  of  thirty-four  per  cent,  and  in 
1867  of  thirty-seven  and  a  half  per  cent.  The  greater  cost  of  an 
inland  message  arises  from  the  fact  that  it  is  received,  forwarded, 
and  delivered  in  the  kingdom,  requiring  the  various  service  con- 
nected with  such  duties  ;  while  transit  messages  simply  pass  through 
the  state,  and  impose  no  expense  for  labor  in  transmission,  re- 
ception, or  delivery,  and  international  messages  require  no  de- 
livery in  the  country  sending  them. 

But  besides  its  annual  losses  to  government,  there  exists  a  seri- 
ous drawback  in  the  value  to  the  people  of  the  reduced  tariff.  The 
diminished  rate  in  Belgium  is  accompanied  by  no  promise  of  prompt 
delivery.  Despatches  at  a  half-franc  each  must  take  their  chance 
of  transmission,  and  submit  to  the  delay  caused  by  other  service. 
Speed  rates  are  established  to  compensate  for  loss  by  the  reduced 
tariff.  Thus,  a  message  requiring  immediate  transit  is  charged 
three  times  an  ordinary  message,  reversing  the  plan  of  the  Western 
Union  Company,  which  transmits  promptly  and  indiscriminately 
2 


18 

at  ordinary  rates,  but  makes  an  immense  reduction  when  the  night 
hours  can  be  used.  Of  course  business  men,  to  whom  time  is 
money,  are  obliged  to  pay  an  extra  franc  to  secure  that  prompt- 
ness and  certainty  of  transmission  without  which  the  telegraph  is 
of  little  value  for  all  important  transactions.  The  tariff  has  been, 
therefore,  practically  increased  to  one  and  a  half  francs,  or  forty- 
two  cents  for  distances  which  cannot  average  more  than  seventy- 
five  miles,  and  probably  do  not  exceed  fifty.  The  cheap  mes- 
sages take  their  chance.  In  America,  a  repeated  message  is 
charged  half  a  rate  more  than  the  ordinary  tariff.  In  Belgium 
it  pays  four  single  rates.  Cipher  messages  are  also  charged  four 
times  the  price  of  ordinary  messages,  while  here  they  are  received 
at  ordinary  rates. 

Were  the  United  States  government  to  construct  lines  under 
the  Washburne  bill,  and  adopt  this  Belgian  system,  its  tariffs  be- 
tween Washington  and  Baltimore  —  about  the  average  distance  of 
the  Belgian  service  —  would  be,  for  prompt  delivery  such  as  our 
telegraph  companies  perform,  forty-five  cents,  instead  of  the  exist- 
ing charge  of  ten  cents ;  for  messages  to  which  no  assurance  of 
promptitude  is  given,  fifteen  cents  ;  and  for  repeated  messages, 
sixty  cents,  instead  of  our  present  rate  of  fifteen  cents.  If,  now, 
with  all  its  advantages  of  cheap  labor  and  the  profits  arising  from 
international  and  transit  messages,  the  Belgian  government,  on 
these  bases  of  charge,  admits  a  clear  loss  in  1866  of  255,282 
francs,  how  will  it  be  possible  for  Mr.  Washburne  to  secure  a 
profit  to  government  large  enough  in  a  few  years  to  pay  the 
cost  of  the  line,  on  a  common  tariff  of  fifteen  cents  for  all  classes 
of  messages  ? 

BELGIAN  OFFICIALS  ACKNOWLEDGE  THE  IMPERFECTIONS   OF 
THEIR   SYSTEM. 

As  Mr.  Washburne  claims  for  European  telegraphs  speed,  cer- 
tainty, and  economy,  it  is  well  to  be  able  to  read  Belgian  official 
testimony  on  the  same  subject.  The  last  report  of  the  Belgian 
department  of  public  works  has  the  following  paragraph :  — 

"  Imperfection  has  existed  at  all  times  and  in  all  places.  It  is  in  vain 
to  attempt  to  obtain  equally  rapid  and  exact  transmission  under  all  cir- 


,   19 

cumstances.  Delay  will  occur,  whatever  may  be  done  to  prevent  it,  by 
the  blocking  up  of  lines,  by  a  temporary  influx  of  business  ;  and,  in  a 
country  where  distances  are  short,  that  delay  may  equal,  and  some- 
times even  exceed,  the  time  that  would  ]be  occupied  in  transmitting  by 
railway." 

Official  truthfulness  and  modesty  thus  lifts  the  veil  from  a  system 
held  up  for  our  admiration,  and  reveals  its  weakness. 

INSTRUCTIVE  HISTORY  OF  BELGIAN  TELEGRAPHS. 

The  history  of  the  use  of  the  telegraph  in  Belgium  is  instruc- 
tive. 

During  1851,  the  first  recorded  year  of  its  existence,  there  passed 
between  the  offices  of  the  whole  of  that  kingdom,  as  shown  by 
Mr.  Wash burne's  tables,  twenty-one  messages  per  day.  If  we  may- 
suppose,  what  seems  scarcely  credible,  that  only  five  of  her  chief 
cities  were  at  that  time  connected  by  the  wires,  —  Ghent,  Antwerp, 
Brussels,  Bruges,  and  Liege,  —  it  exhibited  the  remarkable  spectacle 
of  a  telegraph  line  opened  by  government  "  in  the  interest  of  the 
people,"  used  to  the  extent  of  about  four  messages  per  day  at  each 
of  her  five  chief  cities! 

Even  after  four  years  more  had  been  used  in  the  extension 
of  her  lines,  the  daily  transmission  only  increased  to  fifty-five 
messages  per  day  for  the  whole  kingdom,  showing  how  slowly  and 
jealously  the  lines  were  given  to  public  employment,  and  how 
utterly  futile  is  the  assertion  that  the  public  interest,  at  that  time 
at  least,  controlled  the  state  in  their  management. 

The  tariff',  which  had  averaged  during  the  first  year  $1.26  per 
message,  and  had  not,  so  far,  been  practically  reduced,  showed  still 
more  clearly  that  only  the  rich  used  it,  and  that  it  was,  on  account 
of  its  cost,  practically  beyond  the  employment  of  the  people.  The 
truth  is,  as  Mr.  Washburne  states,  that  the  Belgian  government, 
fearing  its  use  in  private  hands,  and  suspicious  that  by  private 
energy  the  telegraph  would  be  made  to  rival,  if  not  ruin,  the 
Belgian  post,  seized  and  held  it  from  popular  control.  There  is 
certainly  nothing  in  the  first  five  years  of  its  existence  in  Belgium 
which  proves  that  government,  as  is  claimed,  desired  to  give  the 
fruits  of  a  great  invention  to  the  Belgian  people.  During  all  of 


20 

these  years,  however,  and  in  marked  contrast  to  the  lines  under 
government  management  everywhere,  hundreds  of  thousands  of 
messages  were  passing  over  the  telegraph  lines  in  the  United  States, 
at  a  tariff  which  made  them  available  to  all  its  citizens,  and  show- 
ing a  daily  record  in  some  of  the  smaller  of  its  inland  towns  greater 
than  that  of  all  the  Belgian  offices  combined. 

When  in  1866  the  Belgian  government,  by  the  radical  reduc- 
tion of  the  tariff  to  half  a  franc,  endeavored  to  render  the  service 
more  generally  useful  to  the  people,  it  did  so  at  the  expense  of  the 
public  treasury ;  since  on  each  of  the  2,180  inland  messages 
transmitted  per  day  a  loss  of  thirty-eight  centimes,  or  more  than 
two  thirds  the  established  rate,  was  sustained  ;  and,  as  we  have 
elsewhere  stated,  this  loss  would  have  been  much  greater,  but  for 
a  profit  derived  from  international  and  transit  messages,  which  went 
to  the  credit  of  the  whole  service. 

SINGULAR  IDEA  THAT  A  SMALL  TELEGRAPH  SYSTEM  IS  MORE 
«    DIFFICULT  TO  MANAGE  THAN  A  LARGE  ONE. 

"  It  appears  to  be  tolerably  clear,"  says  Mr.  Washburne,  "  that, 
in  order  to  assert  the  superiority  of  a  system  on  a  small  scale,  it 
.  requires  even  more  care  and  greater  attention  to  cope  with  an  in- 
creased traffic  than  an  establishment  whose  ramifications  embrace 
a  larger  sphere." 

This  remark  is  made  with  reference  to  the  necessity  of  great 
promptitude  in  the  (Delivery  of  messages  in  Belgium,  where  the 
places  connected  are  contiguous,  and  conveyance  by  railroad  rapid 
and  frequent.  It  is  made  also  to  show  that  it  is  more  difficult 
under  such  circumstances  to  cope  with  an  enlarged  use  of  the 
telegraph  than  in  the  United  States,  where,  by  reason  of  distance 
and  the  comparative  infrequency  of  transit  by  railroad,  the  ne- 
cessity of  promptitude  is  presumably  less  urgent. 

At  first  the  argument  seems  fair,  but  when  examined,  it  has  no 
foundation  except  in  the  general  fact  that  distance  and  infrequent 
transit  by  rail  may  render  the  telegraph  valuable  and  desirable, 
even  without  the  promptness  essential  where  transit  is  rapid  and 
frequent. 

The  weakness  of  the  argument  is  evident  when  it  is  seen  thjat, 
as  distances  decrease,  all  the  elements  of  cost  and  maintenance  of 


21 

lines  and  the  difficulties  arising  from  elemental  disturbances,  lessen 
in  the  same  proportion.  This  admits  of  easy  illustration.  Look 
for  a  moment  at  Belgium,  of  which  Mr.  Washburn  treats  so  co- 
piously. Located  centrally  in  that  kingdom,  in  the  form  of  a  tri- 
angle, and  separated  from  each  other  by  about  thirty  miles  each, 
are  her  three  chief  cities,  Ghent,  Brussels,  and  Antwerp.  To  con- 
nect either  two  of  these  a  line  of  telegraph  thirty  miles  long  is 
required,  which  government  builds  upon  its  own  property  and 
protects  by  its  own  police.  However  thoroughly  built,  its  cost  is 
necessarily  small.  There  is  no  trouble  or  uncertainty  in  working  it. 
Its  very  shortness  renders  its  perfection  in  the  use  of  all  the  appli- 
ances which  science  and  experience  have  shown  desirable  readily 
and  cheaply  attainable,  and  it  is  easily  kept  in  order.  When  in- 
creased public  use  imperils  promptness  by  the  limited  provision 
of  wires,  ten  men,  in  a  single  week,  can  erect  another.  In  all  this 
the  very  proximity  of  the  points  to  be  connected  facilitates  and 
economizes  every  step  required  in  meeting  the  enlarged  neces- 
sities. 

The  management  of  such  lines,  short,  well-guarded,  and  per- 
manent, is  almost  solely  confined  to  the  arrangements  for  transmis- 
sion and  delivery. 

In  Belgium,  therefore,  which  contains  only  two  thirds  as  many 
offices  as  the  Western  Union  Telegraph  Company  maintains  in  the 
State  of  New  York  alone,  with  her  commercial  centres  near  to- 
gether, with  an  average  of  less  than  three  wires  on  her  poles,  with 
her  .2,232  miles  of  line  on  government  property  and  protected  by 
its  authority,  want  of  promptness  would  be  inexcusable,  because  so 
easily  effected.  Were .  New  York  and  Chicago  only  thirty  miles 
apart,  and  all  the  messages  of  the  United  States,  now  approxi- 
mating thirteen  millions  per  annum,  required  to  be  passed  be- 
tween them  at  the  rate  of  36,000  per  day,  and  within  an  average 
of  fifteen  minutes  from  the  time  of  their  reception,  as  is  now  done 
between  the  Chambers  of  Commerce  of  these  cities,  it  could  be 
accomplished  with  comparative  ease,  and  especially  so  were  the 
land  which  the  wires  traversed  the  property  of  the  company,  and 
the  lines  guarded  by  the  nation.  Once  render  it  easy  and  inex- 
pensive to  provide  a  reliable  outward  structure,  and  the  work  of 
the  telegraph  becomes  a  matter  of  simple  internal  organization, 


22 

except  as  competition  and  the  necessities  of  extension  in  a  land 
so  vast  as  ours  adds  to  the  ordinary  cares  of  administration.  The 
immense  distances  between  our  centres  of  commerce,  the  multi- 
tude of  far  separated  radiating  centres  of  business,  the  great  ex- 
posure and  defective  protection  of  our  lines,  and  constantly  in- 
creasing system  of  wires  -which  are  constructed  as  rapid ily  as  new 
demands  for  their  extension  are  made,  render  the  management 
of  this  company  one  of  the  most  arduous  and  complicated  of  pri- 
vate enterprises.  There  is  nothing  in  Europe  or  elsewhere  which 
bears  any  proper  resemblance  to  the  American  telegraph  system, 
nor  with  which  it  can  be  properly  compared. 

Between  the  systems  of  Belgium  and  the  United  States  we 
witness  the  following  marked  contrast.  The  companies  here  have 
only  one  tariff  for  transmission,  and  all  take  their  turn.  The  pay- 
ment of  an  extra  franc  cannot,  as  in  Belgium,  purchase  priority, 
or  give  one  advantage  over  his  neighbor.  This  is  an  imposition 
of  the  government,  similar  to,  and  even  less  defensible,  than  that 
which  in  England  requires  four  postages  to  secure  the  safety  of 
a  letter.  Here  the  companies  offer  to  guarantee  the  public  against 
error  by  an  extra  payment  of  one  half  the  ordinary  tariff;  but 
the  public,  because  of  their  confidence  in  the  company,  do  not  avail 
themselves  of  this  provision .  to  an  extent  of  one  in  ten  thousand  ! 
Messages  sent  in  cipher,  for  which  no  extra  charge  is  made  in  the 
United  States,  can  only  be  sent  in  Europe  by  the  payment  of  four 
ordinary  tariffs,  and  in  some  states  in  Europe,  and  among  others 
France,  the  government  will  not  permit  their  being  sent  at  all. 

NECESSITY   FOR    THE    UNIFICATION    OF   THE    TELEGRAPH 

SYSTEM. 

It  is  curious  to  observe  that  the  reasons  assigned  for  the  ad- 
vantages to  be  gained  by  governmental  control  are  precisely  the 
same  which  led  to  the  consolidation  under  one  management  of 

77> 

the  great  mass  of  the  American  lines,  and  which  has  led  to  the 
unjust  charge  of  monopoly  as  the  work  of  unification  has  pro- 
gressed. 

Mr.  Scudamore  says:  "When  I  began  to  collect  the  information 
on  which  this  report  is  based,  I  was  not  free  from  doubts  as  to  the 
propriety  of  the  scheme  ;  but,  after  patiently  collecting  and  con- 


23 

sidering  all  the  data  which  I  could  obtain,  I  found  myself  driven, 
by  the  mere  force  of  facts,  to  the  conclusion  at  which  I  have 
arrived.  This  conclusion,  indeed,  is  almost  identical  with  that  to 
which  the  directors  of  the  Electric  and  International  Telegraph 
Company  came  in  the  year  1852,  and  which  they  thus  stated  to 
their  stockholders :  — 

"  The  delays,  inaccuracies,  and  expense  of  the  continental  tele- 
graphs are  an  exemplification  of  the  great  advantage  to  the  public 
of  the  administration  being  under  a  single  management.  This  cir- 
cumstance alone  admits  of  the  establishment  of  a  low  and  uniform 
tariff.  ....  The  telegraph  has  already  become  a  most  powerful 
and  useful  agent,  and  has,  in  a  measure,  been  adopted  as  a  means 
of  communication  by  persons  employed  in  commercial  pursuits, 
but,  owing  to  the  want  of  proper  arrangement  and  facilities,  and 
the  fact  of  the  management  of  the  lines  being  divided  by  sev- 
eral companies,  without  unison  in  action  or  interest,  the  public 
generally  have  been  debarred  from  benefiting  by  the  immense 
accommodation  and  advantages  the  telegraph  is  capable  of  afford- 
ing." 

In  presenting  the  same  idea,  Mr.  Washburne,  with  a  looseness 
of  statement  for  which  we  know  of  no  proper  justification,  re- 
marks as  follows :  — 

"  There  can  be  no  doubt  that  the  superiority  of  the  continental  system 
over  every  other  is  -due  to  the  fact  that  the  telegraph  there  is  a  govern- 
ment institution,  while  in  this  country  it  is  left  to  private  enterprise.  In- 
dividual and  associated  effort  have  done  much,  but,  with  the  confusion  of 
our  telegraphic  system  before  us,  it  would  be  folly  to  shut  our  eyes  to  the 
inherent  weakness  of  all  joint-stock  enterprises.  Absence  of  responsibility, 
waste  of  labor,  irresolute  councils,  expensive  management,  want  of  effec- 
tive control  over  subordinates,  are  among  the  evils  of  such  associations,  to 
say  nothing  of  the  imperative  demands  of  stockholders  that  dividends 
shall  be  made  and  that  none  shall  be  hazarded.  Under  government,  con- 
trol one  governing  body  would  do  the  work  now  done  by  twenty,  and  the 
obligation  to  realize  profits  would  not  interfere  to  prevent  the  reduction 
of  rates  or  the  proper  extension  of  the  system." 

Passing  over  the  charges  of  "waste,  irresponsibility,  and  irreso- 
lute councils,"  which  serve  to  round  the  paragraph  in  which  they 
occur,  the  focal  idea  is  the  efficiency  secured  by  a  united  control. 
That  is  the  very  basis  of  this  company's  organization.  Discarding 
as  false  and  perilous  any  general  assumption  of  the  enterprises  of 


24 

» 

the  people  by  the  government,  and  accepting  its  refusal  to  attach 
the  telegraph  to  its  administration,  when  offered  to  it  by  its  inventor, 
as  for  the  best  interest  of  the  nation,  this  company  early  saw  that 
united  action  between  the  extremes  of  our  territorial  limits  was  as 
essential  to  its  own  success  as  to  public  convenience.  With  nu- 
merous companies,  of  limited  jurisdiction,  and  tariffs  on  all  bases, 
—  which  had  to  be  added  and  dovetailed  to  each  other  whenever  a 
despatch  passed  between  two  distant  places,  —  there  was  neither 
certainty  of  correctness,  promptitude,  nor  the  possibility  of  a  low 
and  uniform  tariff.  To  secure  all  of  these  the  leading  telegraph 
organizations  combined.  It  was  a  step  necessary  alike  for  public 
usefulness  and  success,  and  is  accomplishing  all  that  could  be  de- 
sired. The  system  has  penetrated  farther,  and  compassed  more 
territory  than  separate  organizations  could  have  attempted  or  than 
even  government  itself  would  have  been  willing  to  undertake. 
Its  administration  is  vast,  harmonious,  liberal,  exact,  economical, 
and  just.  It  uses  its  revenues  largely  to  extend  its  realm  of  use- 
fulness to  the  people  of  every  section  of  the  country.  It  seeks  to 
secure  the  highest  skill  arid  character  in  its  employees.  Its  aim 
is  to  give  the  wires  to  the  use  of  the  whole  people  on  the  lowest 
terms  consistent  with  proper  self-support  and  the  just  return 
which  capital  and  skill  demand.  It  will  accomplish  all  the  nation 
requires  of  it,  if  allowed  to  solve  its  own  problem,  making  the 
wires  the  accepted  right  arm  of  the  public  industries,  and  the 
emblem  of  universal  unity  and  good-will. 

ESTIMATE  OF  THE  COST  OF  BUILDING  TELEGRAPH  LINES. 

Mr.  Washburne  says  :  — 

"  Any  one  at  all  familiar  with  the  prices  of  materials  and  labor  in  the 
various  countries  will  see  that,  as  to  materials  for  the  construction  of  lines, 
they  are  cheaper  here  than  in  any  European  country,  and  that  the  whole 
cost  of  constructing  telegraphic  lines  must  be  less  here  than  in  Belgium 
or  Switzerland.  In  the  latter  country  a  large  proportion  of  the  lines  are 
erected  upon  iron  posts,  the  prime  cost  of  which  with  the  stone  base  is  from 
$  6  to  $9  each,  or  from  five  to  seven  times  the  cost  of  the  posts  usually  em- 
ployed in  America. 

"  As  to  the  exact  cost  of  constructing  lines  in  the  United  States  it  is  dif- 
ficult to  procure  reliable  data.  There  are  few  questions  apparently  so 
simple  upon  which  so  many  conflicting  opinions  have  been  printed.  So 
simple  a  matter  as  the  cost  of  posts,  say  thirty  feet  long,  the  placing  of 


25 

them  in  the  earth,  furnishing  and  placing  the  necessary  iron  wires  and 
insulators  and  the  fitting  up  of  stations  with  instruments  and  furniture, 
ought  not,  one  would  suppose,  to  be  a  difficult  thing  to  fix.  Yet  persons 
claiming  to  be  experts,  and  even  authorities  in  all  matters  relating  to  tele- 
graphs, have  differed  very  widely.  Mr.  Prescott,  a  telegraph  superin- 
tendent, and  the  author  of  a  work  on  '  Electric  Telegraphs,'  estimates  the 
cost  of  a  mile  of  telegraph,  built  as  they  ordinarily  are,  at  $  61.80.*  .  .  . 
"  This  is  about  the  cost  of  construction  of  a  majority  of  our  lines,  but 
if  built  as  they  should  be,  they  would  co>t  $  150  per  mile.  If  additional 
wires  are  added,  each  wire  put  up  would  be,  per  mile,  $32.80." 

Mr.  Washburne's  statement,  that  telegraph  lines  can  be  built 
cheaper  in  the  United  States  than  in  Europe,  is  entirely  incorrect. 
Labor,  wire,  machinery,  insulators,  and  every  appliance  peculiar 
to  the  telegraph,  are  very  much  cheaper  in  Europe  than  in  Amer- 
ica, and  large  importations  of  wire  are  constantly  being  made 
from  Belgium  and  England,  notwithstanding  the  heavy  duty. 

The  difference  in  the  cost  of  labor  in  Europe  and  America 
is  very  great.  The  most  recent  authentic  publication  on  the 
subject  f  states  that  the  general  average  rates  paid  for  all  kinds 
of  labor  in  the  United  Kingdom  are  as  follows :  For  adult  males, 
in  England,  8  4.96  per  week;  in  Scotland,  $4.52;  in  Ireland, 
$  3.16.  For  boys  and  youths,  under  twenty  years  of  age,  in 
England,  81.44;  in  Scotland,  $1.70;  in  Ireland,  81.38.  For 
adult  women,  in  England,  8  2.76  ;  in  Scotland,  $  2.32 ;  in  Ire- 
land, $  2.06.  For  girls,  under  twenty  years  of  age,  in  England, 
$1.88  ;  in  Scotland,  $1.80  ;  in  Ireland,  81.62.  These  rates  are 
stated  to  be  high,  as  compared  with  other  countries  in  Europe. 

In  Belgium,  coal-miners  earn  from  33  cents  to  $1.00  per  day, 
the  average  being  56  cents.  In  iron-furnaces,  a  puddler  earns 
from  92  cents  to  8  1.10,  and  the  under  hands  from  50  cents  to  62 
cents  per  day.  In  iron-foundries,  a  moulder  earns  from  44  cents 
to  62  cents  per  day.  In  Paris,  the  average  for  adult  male  labor 
is  76  cents  per  day,  and  for  women  38  cents;  but  in'  the  interior 
of  France  the  price  is  much  less.  In  Prussia,  first-class  engineers 
earn  8  1.10,  and  second-class  83  cents. 

Among  the  working  classes  in   the   United  Kingdom   are  in- 

*  This  statement  was  written  in  1859,  and  the  object  of  the  author  was  to  show  the 
inferior  manner  in  which  a  majority  of  the  lines  were  constructed  at  that  time. 

t  Wages  and  Earnings  of  the  Working  Classes.  By  Leone  Levi,  F.  S.  S.,  F.  S.  A., 
Professor  of  the  Principles  and  Practice  of  Commerce  in  King's  College.  London : 
John  Murray.  1867. 


26 


eluded  all  who,  whether  as  workers  for  others  or  as  workers  for 
themselves,  are  employed  in  manual  labor,  be  it  productive  of 
wealth  or  not;  and  they  are  divided  into  five  classes,  viz. 
professional,  domestic,  commercial,  agricultural,  and  industrial. 
The  total  number  of  workers  is  estimated  at  eleven  millions,  and 
the  average  weekly  earnings  in  the  United  Kingdom  are :  Men, 
under  twenty,  $  1.59  ;  from  twenty  to  sixty,  $  4.18  ;  women,  under 
twenty,  $  1.72  ;  from  twenty  to  sixty,  $  2.41.  Average  weekly 
earnings  from  every  avocation  in  Great  Britain  and  Ireland,  $  3.16. 

Thirty  per  cent  of  the  people  of  the  United  Kingdom  live  in 
houses  the  rental  of  which  is  less  than  $  31  per  annum,  and 
seventeen  per  cent  in  those  under  $  45  per  year. 

In  the  preparation  of  the  following  table  we  have  consulted 
Professor  Levi's  work  on  Wages  and  Earnings  in  England ; 
"  Government  and  the  Telegraphs  "  (London,  1868)  ;  "  Special 
Report  on  the  Electric  Telegraph  Bill  "  ;  u  Publications  of  the 
Statistical  Bureau  at  Washington  "  ;  and  the  official  records  of 
the  Western  Union  Telegraph  Company. 

Statement  showing  the  Average  Cost  of  Labor  in  England  and  the 
United  States. 


Prices  paid  per  Day. 

England. 

United  States. 

Carpenters  and  Builders 

*"  $  1  14 

$3  25 

.68 

2.25 

1  32 

3  85 

Farm  Laborers  

42 

2  00 

Iron  Founders  

1.10 

3.25 

1  25 

3  50 

Letter-Carriers  *  

74 

2  18 

Printers  

1  02 

2  50 

85 

3.00 

92 

3  85 

Soldiers  

.22 

.62 

Servant-girls  

.16 

.48 

41 

1  99 

*  The  number  of  letter  carriers  employed  by  the  British  Post-Office  Department  for 
the  year  1866  was  11,449,  and  the  total  expenditures  for  the  same  $2,664,000,  being 
an  average  of  $  232.68  per  annum  for  each  man. 

The  number  of  letter-carriers  employed  by  the  Post  Office  Department  of  the  United 
States  for  the  year  1866  was  863,  and  the  total  expenditures  for  the  same  $  589,236.41, 
being  an  average  of  $  682.77  for  each'  man. 

t  The  cost  of  labor  of  telegraph  employees  is  obtained  by  dividing  the  total  amount 
paid  for' labor  by  the  number  of  persons  employed  of  all  kinds.  The  average  price  per 
day  for  operators  in  the  United  States  is  $  2.25,  and  in  England  62  cents. 


27 

With  a  knowledge  of  the  great  difference  in  the  cost  of  labor 
and  material  in  Europe  and  America  which  the  above  statistics 
show,  we  cannot  comprehend  the  propriety  of  Mr.  Washburne's 
assertion  that  the  whole  cost  of  constructing  telegraphic  lines 
must  be  less  here  than  in  Belgium  or  Switzerland. 

Even  our  poles  are  purchased  in  the  Dominion  of  Canada,  and 
paid  for  in  gold.  The  cost  of  transportation  from  the  St.  Law- 
rence to  New  York  cannot  be  much,  if  any,  more  than  the  cost  of 
their  delivery  at  London,  Havre,  or  Brussels. 

In  the  United  States,  telegraph-poles  are  of  cedar  or  chest- 
nut, —  more  generally  of  the  former.  In  England,  the  larch 
is  the  most  common ;  in  Russia,  the  pine ;  in  France,  pine, 
alder,  poplar,  and  other  white  woods;  and  in  Germany,  spruce 
and  pine.* 

The  cost  of  a  telegraph  line  depends,  like  the  cost  of  a  house 
or  any  other  structure,  upon  how  it  is  built,  but  Mr.  Washburne, 
or  any  other  intelligent  man,  ought  to  know  that  the  price  ap- 
propriated in  his  bill  for  a  four-wire  line  from  Washington  to  New 
York  cannot  possibly  build  it,  even  should  government  build  such 
a  structure  as  those  which  a  dozen  years  ago  cursed  the  enter- 
prise, and  made  it  a  reproach  and  shame.  When  government 
builds  a  line  of  telegraph  on  the  plea  of  public  necessity,  it  should 
require  that  its  structures  at  least  be  equal  to  those  of  its  citizens. 
It  is  not  strange  that,  with  the  crude  and  cheap  ideas  formed  by 
Mr.  Washburne  of  telegraph  structures,  he  disparages  and  under- 
values the  properties  of  the  existing  companies,  and  ridicules  the 
estimates  furnished  Congress  in  their  communications. 

DOUBTS    REGARDING  THE    ESTIMATES    OF    TELEGRAPH 
EXPERTS  AS  TO  COST  OF  CONSTRUCTING  LINES. 

We  quote  from  Mr.  Washburne's  paper :  — 

"In  February,  1866,  when,  in  view  of  the  establishment  of  an  experi- 
mental government  line  of  telegraph,  the  Postmaster-General  was  called 
upon  for  information  'in  regard  to  the  feasibility  and  usefulness  of 
establishing,  in  connection  with  the  Post-Office  Department,  telegraph 
lines,'  &c.,  'to  be  opened  to  the  public  at  minimum  rates  of  charge, 
....  and  such  statistics  and  exhibits  predicated  on  cost  of  construc- 
tion and  capacity  of  transmission  as  will  best  illustrate  its  practica- 

*  Telegraph  Manual. 


28 

bility,'  he  sent  to  Congress  lengthy  statements,  all  of  them  prepared  by 
persons  believed  to  be  interested  in  or  officers  of  existing  companies, 
in  which  the  cost  of  a  telegraphic  line  with  six  wires  is  put  down  by  one 
writer  at  SI, 400  per  mile,  by  others  at  $665,  exclusive  of  river  cables 
and  lines  through  cities. 

"  Among  other  statements  so  furnished  is  an  amended  one  by  Mr. 
Prescott,  whose  statement,  when  made  part  of  a  Work  intended  as 
authority  in  telegraphic  matters,  is  quoted  above.  For  reasons  not 
explained  his  views  underwent  a  marked  change  between  1860  and 
1866,  and  he  makes  haste  to  refute  his  own  previous  statements.  His 
revised  statement  is  as  follows :  — 

" '  It  is  well  known  by  every  person  who  has  any  knowledge  of  telegraphy  in 
this  country  previous  to  the  publication  of  my  work  in  1860,  that  comparatively 
few  lines  had  been  at  that  time  even  tolerably  well  constructed ;  and  one  object 
which  I  had  in  view  in  writing  it  was  to  call  attention  to  this  prevailing  fault, 
and  endeavor  to  get  a  better  system  inaugurated. 

"  *  Since  then  there  has  been  a  very  marked  improvement  in  the  construction 
of  telegraph  lines  in  this  country.  Small  poles,  of  inferior  wood,  which  required 
renewing  every  few  years,  have  given  place  to  large  and  more  enduring  ones  of 
chestnut  and  cedar,  and  small  iron  wire,  which  offered  great  resistance  to  the 
passage  of  the  electric  current,  has  given  place  to  zinc-coated  wire  of  larger  size 
and  greater  conductivity. 

'"But  while  the  quality  of  the  lines  has  greatly  improved  under  the  experienced 
and  liberal  management  of  the  telegraph  companies,  the  cost  of  constructing 
lines  has  kept  pace  with  the  increased  cost  of  everything  else,  and  has  more 
than  doubled  within  the  past  six  years,  so  that  lines  which  could  have  been  built 
in  1860  for  $  150  per  mile  could  not  now  be  constructed  for  twice  that  amount. 
A  substantial  telegraph  line,  constructed  on  the  line  of  a  railroad,  with  cedar  or 
chestnut  poles  thirty  feet  in  length,  and  six  inches  at  the  top  by  twelve  at  the 
butt,  set  forty  to  the  mile,  with  most  improved  form  of  insulator  and  best  gal- 
vanized wire,  would  cost  $  400  per  mile  for  a  single  wire.  If  forty-foot  poles 
were  used  (which  would  be  nece.-sary  if  many  wires  were  to  be  placed  upon 
one  set  of  poles),  it  would  cost  $  600  per  mile  for  a  single  wire.  When  fifty- 
foot  poles  are  used,  the  cost  is  very  greatly  enhanced. 

"'-Mr.  Brown  estimates  the  total  cost  of  all  the  telegraph  property  in  the 
United  States  at  "a  little  more  than  $2,000,000."  Now,  if  we  estimate  the 
present  cost  of  the  lines  and  their  equipment  at  the  moderate  price  of  $  300  per 
mile,  and  the  number  of  miles  of  wire  in  the  country  at  only  150,000,  we  have 
a  total  cost  of  $  45,000,000,  without  reckoning  the  value  of  the  patents,  fran- 
chises, &c. 

"'Mr.  Brown  states  that  "telegraphs  properly  corstructed,  the  timber  well 
prepared  and  wire  protected,  will  last  for  20  years."  This  may  be  true,  but  it 
remains  to  be  proved.'  " 

We  fail  to  discern  any  refutation  by  Mr.  Prescott  of  his  previous 
statements.  His  reasons  for  a  change  in  the  estimates  for  building 
a  telegraph  line  in  1866  over  those  of  1860  hardly  need  be  stated. 
If  the  results  of  the  intervening  years  of  civil  war,  by  which  a  mil- 
lion of  able-bodied  men  were  cut  off  from  the  fields  of  labor,  the 
industries  of  the  country  burdened  with  enormous  taxes  before  un- 
known, and  prices  inflated  by  the  issue  of  hundreds  of  millions  of 


29 

paper  dollars,  do  not  suggest  them,  there  is  small  hope  of  profit 
from  the  practical  lessons  of  the  times. 


INCORRECT  ASSERTION  THAT  AMERICAN  TELEGRAPHS  ARE 
NOT  CONSTRUCTED  ACCORDING  TO  SPECIFICATIONS. 

Mr.  Washburne  says  :  — 

"  The  officers  of  the  telegraph  companies,  whose  elaborate  statement  is 
also  forwarded  by  the  Postmaster-General,  estimate  as  follows:  — 

"  '  Cost  of  construction,  including  engineering,  patents,  and  franchises,  per 

mile  :   one  wire  —  six  wires. 

*' 4  The  cost  of  building  lines  varies  according  to  locality,  timber,  method,  nature 

of  the  ground,  and  the  wires  to  be  borne. 

"  '  A  line  from  New  York  to  Washington  should  be  of  the  best  class,  and  would 

be  represented  by  the  following  figures  :  — 

43  poles  delivered  at  stations, $161.25 

129  arms,  complete, 129.00 

43  holes,  five  feet  deep,  tools,  &c., 30.00 

Labor,  —  handling,  preparing,  erecting,  &c.,    .....    25.00 

Six  wires,  at  twelve  cents  per  pound, 240.00 

Labor,  —  wiring,  transportation,  &c., 30.00 

Distributing  poles, 25.00 

Superintendence,  &c., 25.00 

665.25 


240  miles  at  $  665.25,  Washington  to  New  York,        .         .         .  $  159,660 
Lines  through  New  York,  Philadelphia,  Baltimore,  and  Washington,  16,000 

22  cables  at  rivers  south  of  the  Hudson, 20,000 

Cable  at  Hudson  River,  house,  boats,  &c., 8,000 

$203,660 


" '  The  cost  of  franchises  and  patents  cannot  be  given. 

"  '  Such  a  line  built  by  government,  carefully,  and  with  reference  to  per- 
manence, with  six  wires,  would  cost  $  250,000. 

" '  If,  however,  it  is  seriously  contemplated  by  the  government  to  construct 
lines  along  the  great  commercial  routes,  and  if  it  be  the  design  in  so  doing  to 
remove  from  the  system,  by  every  attainable  appliance  or  improvement,  all  its 
ascertained  defects,  a  structure  of  larger  poles,  and  wires  of  superior  conducting 
qualities,  will  be  built.  Such  a  line  should  be  constructed  of  the  most  solid  and 
durable  wood,  such  as  the  black  locust,  so  that  masses  of  sleet  or  moist  sliow,  so 
destructive  to  present  lines,  would  leave  it  uninjured.  Heavier  wires  also, 
which,  by  their  increased  conducting  capacity,  would  give  greater  facility  and 
certainty  to  transmis.-ion,  should  be  used. 

" '  These  improvements,  with  greater  care  taken  in  the  execution  of  the  work 
than  in  that  of  ordinary  structures,  will,  of  course,  increase  its  cost  in  proportion, 
to  the  care  bestowed.  And  should  the  government  determine  to  provide  facil- 
ities equal  to  those  now  proffered  by  private  companies,  it  would  be  necessary 
to  erect  at  least  five  lines  of  poles  bearing  six  wires  each,  that  being  the  number 
(thirty  in  all)  now  in  use  between  New  York  and  Washington  by  all  the 
companies.  • 


30 

"  '  A  common  wire  line,  intended  to  bear  one,  and  not  more  than  two  wires, 
can  be  built  for  $  150  to  $  180  per  mile,  the  wire  being  number  nine,  galvanized, 
the  poles  of  limited  size,  and  costing  not  over  $  1.25  each.' 

"  It  nowhere  appears  that  such  lines  as  all  these  writers  insist  shall  be 
built  by  the  government  have  ever  been  built  in  this  or  any  other  coun- 
try. They  seem  to  have  taken  it  as  matter  of  course  ihat  the  govern- 
ment, if  the  experiment  proposed  should  be  tried,  will  depart  from  the 
usual  method  of  construction  and  build  the  novel  and  costly  structures 
for  which  their  estimates  are  made.  One  looks  in  vain  in  the  communi- 
cation sent  to  Congress  by  the  Postmaster- General  for  any  reliable  infor- 
mation as  to  the  cost  of  a  telegraphic  line,  constructed  as  such  lines  are 
in  this  and  other  countries,  and  such  a  line  as  the  government,  if  it  should 
be  determined  to  build  an  experimental  line,  would  probably  build." 


COST    OF    AMERICAN    TELEGRAPHS   ESTIMATED   BY   EUROPEAN 

DATA. 

In  reply  to  Mr.  Washburne's  statement  that  no  such  lines  as 
all  these  writers  insist  shall  be  built  by  the  government  have  ever 
been  built  in  this  or  any  other  country,  we  respectfully,  but  firmly, 
assert  that  he  is  mistaken.  This  company  possesses  thousands  of 
miles  of  telegraph  lines  constructed  after  the  specifications  given 
above,  and  costing  as  much  as  the  estimates  which  he  so  emphati- 
cally distrusts.  In  order,  however,  to  set  this  matter  of  cost  at 
rest,  we  will  endeavor  to  establish  it  by  comparison  with  those  of 
all  other  countries  of  which  we  have  been  able  to  procure  official 
data. 

Mr.  Frank  Ives  Scudamore,  one  of  the  assistant  secretaries  of 
the  British  Post-Office,  and  the  gentleman  who  furnished  the  re- 
ports and  data  by  which  the  British  government  were  induced  to 
monopolize  the  telegraph  in  that  country,  and  who  shows  no  dis- 
position to  overvalue  the  property  or  services  of  private  telegraph 
companies,  testified  before  the  select  committee  of  the  House  of 
Commons,  July  9,  1868,  that  the  total  number  of  miles  of  tele- 
graph in  operation  in  Great  Britain  in  1866  was  16,000,  and 
that  the  companies  expended  in  constructing  the  same  about 
,£2,300,000.* 

The  capital  stock  of  the  various  companies  represented  a  larger 
sum  than  this,  and  Mr.  Scudamore  himself  acknowledges  that  he 

*  Special  Report,  Electric  Telegraph  Bill,  ordered  by  the  House  of  Commons  to 
be  printed,  16  July,  1868.  See  testimony  on  pages  149  and  150. 


31 

has  got  the  amount  under  the  mark  rather  than  over  it ;  there- 
fore we  presume  that  Mr.  Wash  burn  e  will  allow  this  to  be  a  fair 
estimate.  Now  £2,300,000  sterling  is  equal  to  $11,132,000  in 
gold,  or  116,475,360  in  United  States  legal  money.  This  sum, 
divided  by  16,000  miles  of  line,  gives  us  81,029.71  as  the  cost 
per  mile. 

The  Belgian  system  comprised,  at  the  end  of  1866,  3,519  kilo- 
metres of  telegraph  lines,  equal  to  2,187  English  miles.  The  cost 
of  constructing  these  lines,  up  to  December,  1866,  amounted  to 
2,055,083  francs,  equal  to  $411,016.60  gold,  or  $608,304.56  cur- 
rency ;  which  would  give  $  274.14  for  each  mile  of  line.  It  must 
be  borne  in  mind,  however,  that  the  Belgian  government,  owning 
all  the  railroads,  could  transport  all  the  telegraph  material  free, 
and  in  many  other  ways  greatly  reduce  the  cost  of  the  lines ;  of 
course  the  right  of  way  cost  them  nothing,  and  with  us  this  is  an 
important  item. 

Bavaria  has  2,115  miles  of  line,  which  cost  for  construction 
843,207  florins,  equal  to  $340,092.28  gold,  or  $503,338.35  in 
our  currency.  This  would  make  the  cost  per  mile  $  240.  The 
same  conditions,  however*  which  reduced  the  cost  of  construction 
in  Belgium  tended  to  the  same  result  in  Bavaria. 

In  France  there  are  20,028  miles  of  lines  costing  23,800,791 
francs,  equal  to  $  4,760,158.20  in  gold,  or  $  7,045,034.13  in  cur- 
rency, making  the  average  cost  of  each  mile  of  line  $  351.75. 


RECAPITULATION. 

Average  cost  per  mile  of  telegraph  line  in  Great  Britain  and 

Ireland, $1,029.71 

Average  cost  per  mile  of  telegraph  line  in  Belgium,      .         .  274.14 

"         "      "      "  "  "         Bavaria,  .         .         .      240.00 

"         "      «      «  "  "         France,        .         .  351.75 

Total  cost  of  telegraphs  in  Great  Britain  and  Ireland,      $16,475,360.00 

«       «  «          "   Belgium,       ....         608,304.56 

«       «  «         «   Bavaria,  .         .         .  503,338.35 

"      "  "          "    France,          .         .         ...      7,045,034.13 


Total  cost  for  the  four  countries,        .         .     $24,632,037.04 


32 

Total  number  of  miles  of  telegraph  line  in  Great  Britain  and 

Ireland,      *        •      .   .,      .         .      .'.'.        V       .        v  •  •  .     16,000 

Total  number  of  miles  of  telegraph  line  in  Belgium,       .         .  2,187 

"          "                "               "            "         Bavaria,  .         .  ',  .       2,115 

"          "                "               «            «         France,       ^         .  20,028 

Total  number  of  miles  of  telegraph  in  the  four  countries,  40,330 
Average  cost  of  construction  of  each  mile  of  telegraph  line  for 

the  four  countries  above  named,    .         .         .         .         .  $610.76 


VALUE  OF  WESTERN  UNION  TELEGRAPH  PROPERTY,  BASED  ON 
EUROPEAN  DATA. 

The  number  of  miles  of  line  belonging  to  this  company  is 
50,760,  and  the  number  of  miles  of  wire  is  97,416. 

Taking  the  average  cost  per  mile  of  telegraph  line  in  Eng- 
land as  a  basis  for  a  calculation  of  the  cost  of  the  lines  of  the 
Western  Union  Telegraph  Company,  we  have  a  total  value  of 
$52,166,079.60.  If  we  estimate  the  cost  of  our  lines  by  the  aver- 
age cost  of  all  the  telegraph  lines  in  Europe  of  which  any  statis- 
tics can  be  obtained,  we  have  a  total  value  of  $31,002,177.60. 

Much  has  been  said  respecting  the  alleged  unreasonably  large 
capital  of  the  Western  Union  Telegraph  Company.  This  com- 
pany was  organized  in  the  year  1851,  with  a  capital  of  three  hun- 
dred and  sixty  thousand  dollars,  and  constructed  a  line  of  electric 
telegraph  from  Buffalo,  N.  Y.,  to  Louisville,  Ky.,  distance 
about  six  hundred  miles.  The  cost  of  the  line,  on  a  gold 
basis,  was  thus  $  600  per  mile.  The  present  extent  of  line 
belonging  to  this  company,  if  estimated  by  the  cost  of  the  origi- 
nal line,  and  forty  per  cent  be  added  for  the  premium  on  gold, 
would  give  us  $  42,638,400  as  its  value.  On  the  basis  of  the 
cost  of  the  lines  of  the  Atlantic  and  Pacific  Telegraph  Company, 
the  capital  of  the  Western  Union  Telegraph  Company  would  be 
about  $  100,000,000,  and,  on  that  of  some  other  rival  lines,  nearly 
$  200,000,000. 

The  gross  receipts  of  the  Westeni  Union  Telegraph  Com- 
pany from  July  1,  1866,  to  November  1,  1868,  —  two  years 
and  four  months,  —  were  $  16,088,498.86,  and  the  gross  expenses 
$9,862,272.31 ;  leaving  $  6,226,225.75  as  the  net  earnings,  being 


33 

an  average  of  over  seven  per  cent  per  annum  on  the  capital  of  the 
company,  which  is  $40,347,700.  After  applying  $1,934,040.61 
of  the  receipts  of  the  past  two  years  towards  the  construction  of 
new  lines,  and  the  redemption  of  the  bonds  of  the  company,  it  has 
made,  with  one  exception,  regular  semiannual  dividends  of  two  per 
cent.  Such  a  property  as  this,  if  situated  in  England,  or  any  other 
country  in  Europe,  would  be  regarded  as  so  valuable  that  its 
stock*  would  be  held  at  par,  and  yet  it  is  selling  in  our  markets 
at  the  present  time  at  sixty-four  per  cent  discount,  or  at  thirty-six 
dollars  per  share  !  At  this  price  the  entire  property,  including 
payment  of  the  bonded  debt,'would  only  cost  $19,415,672. 

Now  what  is  the  explanation  of  this  singular  distrust  of  the  value 
of  this  great  property  as  shown  by  its  insignificant  present  market 
value  ?  Less  than  four  years  ago  the  stock  sold  at  above  par,  and 
its  earnings  and  prospects  were  then  inferior  to  what  they  are 
at  the  present  time.  An  examination  of  the  tables  on  page  39 
will  show  that  the  gross  receipts  and  net  earnings  have  constantly 
increased  during  the  past  two  and  a  half  years,  and  there  is  every 
reason,  so  far  as  the  management  and  prosperity  of  the  company 
is  concerned,  why  its  market  value  should  have  increased  in- 
stead of  depreciating.  The  explanation  for  this  singular  state  of 
things  is  to  be  found  in  the  constant  agitation  in  Congress  of 
various  schemes  for  the  construction  and  operation  of  government 
telegraphs,  at  prices  very  much  lower  than  the  cost  of  the  service. 
Let  any  industry  be  thus  constantly  menaced,  and  it  must  neces- 
sarily suffer  in  public  estimation  as  a  safe  investment.  We  trust 
the  subject  will  be  effectually  settled  during  the  present  session 
of  Congress,  and  the  incubus  which  has  so  long  rested  upon  this 
important  enterprise  be  removed. 

ERRONEOUS   ESTIMATE    OF    THE    VALUE    OF    THE   WESTERN 
UNION  TELEGRAPH  COMPANY'S  PROPERTY. 

Mr.  Washburne  says  :  — 

"  The  statement  furnished  by  the  officers  of  the  telegraph  companies,  for 
the  information  of  the  Postmaster- General,  and  by  him  forwarded  to 
Congress  as  his  reply  to  the  call  f'or^  information,  is  well  calculated  to 
remove  all  doubts  as  to  the  value  of  this  kind  of  property.  Among  other 
items  of  information  is  the  following  :  — 

"  '  The  length  of  wire  owned  by  the  Western  Union  and  United  States  com- 
3 


34 

panics  is  60,000  miles.*  The  average  cost,  as  based  on  the  now  united  capital, 
is  $  450  per  mile.  This  embraces,  besides  the  poles,  wires,  and  apparatus,  the 
following :  — 

Invested  in  buildings,     .         .         .         .         .         .         .         •  $  95,208.83 

Stocks  in  other  companies, 1,429,900.00 

Office  fittings, 360,000.00 

"It  is  remarkable  that  while  the  length  of  wire  is. given,  the  length  of 
line  nowhere  appears.f  There  is  a  vast  difference  between  the  cost  of  a 
telegraph  line  and  a  telegraphic  wire.  We  have  seen  the  cost  of  a  line 
with  a  single  wire  estimated  at  $  61.80,  and  each  additional  wire  placed 
on  the  same  posts,  $31.80  per  mile. 

"  In  the  absence  of  any  exact  information  on  the  subject,  we  may  fairly 
estimate  that  the  lines  of  the  companies  named  average  three  wires  to 
each  line.  They  possess,  then,  20,000  miles  of  telegraph  line,  with  an 
average  of  three  wires  thereon.  They  speak  of  'single  wire  lines  cost- 
ing $  180  per  mile.'  This  estimate  is  too  high  for  any  line  now  in  use  ; 
but  if  it  be  adopted  as  the  basis  of  calculation,  and  an  allowance  of  $  45 
per  mile  be  made  for  each  additional  wire,  we  have,  for  the  20,000  miles 
of  line  owned  by  the  companies  named,  a  cost  of  $5,400,000,  represented 
by  a  capital  stock  of  $41,000,000!  'The  average  cost'  per  mile 
of  each  wire  suspended  on  their  lines,  '  as  based  on  the  now  united  cap- 
ital, is  $  450  per  mile.'  If  '  the  united  capital '  had  been  based  upon 
the  actual  cost  of  the  property  of  the  company,  it  would  have  been  nearer 
$'4,000,000  than  $41,000,000. 

"  The  '  information '  furnished  to  the  Postmaster- General  is  compiled 
with  the  evident  intent  to  discourage  the  experiment  then  contemplated. 
It  is  incomplete,  and  is  compiled  with  an  intent  to  mislead.  To  any  one 
who  will  take  the  trouble  to  examine  it  carefully,  and  to  apply  the  proper 
tests  to  its  assertions,  it  furnishes  additional  arguments  in  favor  of  a  care- 
ful experiment  by  the  government  in  the  construction  and  maintenance 
of  telegraph  lines  under  control  of  the  Post-Office  Department." 

To  impugn  the  motives  of  an  opponent  is  the  weakest  of  argu- 
ments. If  his  statements  are  wrong,  it  is  easy  to  show  wherein, 
but  wholesale  denunciation  convinces  no  one  of  the  strength  of 
the  cause  or  the  culpability  of  the  assailed.  We  do  not  question 
Mr.  Washburne's  honesty  of  purpose  in  making  his  unjust  and  ex- 
tremely erroneous  statements  regarding  the  property  or  executive 
ability  of  the  Western  Union  Telegraph  Company,  but  we  do  say 
that  he  is  most  egregiously  deceived  upon  all  points  which  he  has 
discussed. 

In  reply  to  the  charges  which  Mr.  Washburne  brings  against 

*  This  estimate  was  made  before  the  consolidation  of  the  American  Telegraph 
Company  and  other  properties  with  the  Western  Union  Telegraph  Company,  and 
when  its  capital  was  only  $  27,000,000. 

t  We  have  given  the  length  of  the  lines,  as  well  as  the  length  of  the  wires  belong- 
ing to  the  Western  Union  Telegraph  Company,  on  page  32. 


35 


the  "Western  Union  Telegraph  Company,  of  compiling  information 
for  the  Postmaster-General  with  an  intent  to  mislead,  of  exagger- 
ating the  cost  of  construction  of  lines,  and  misrepresenting  the  value 
of  its  own,  we  respectfully  present  the  following  facts  respecting 
the  organization  -of  the  company,  the  amount  of  its  capital,  the 
number  of  miles  of  line  and  the  number  of  miles  of  route,  together 
with  a  statement  of  the  number  of  skilled  persons  in  its  employ. 

THE  ORGANIZATION  OF  THE  WESTERN  UNION  TELEGRAPH 
COMPANY. 

In  the  spring  of  1866  there  were  three  telegraph  companies, 
covering  vast  areas  of  territory  in  the  United  States.  Two  of 
these  companies  operated  lines  over  separate  divisions  of  the 
country,  but  worked  in  connection  with  each  other,  while  the 
third,  which  covered  some  portions  of  the  territory  of  the  others, 
was  a  competitor  for  the  business  of  all  sections.  These  three 
companies  were  the  Western  Union,  with  lines  extending  from 
New  York  to  California,  and  throughout  the  Western  States ;  the 
American,  with  lines  extending  from  the  Gulf  of  the  St.  Law- 
rence to  the  Gulf  of  Mexico,  and  through  the  lower  Mississippi 
and  Ohio  Valleys ;  and  the  United  States,  with  lines  extending 
from  Portland,  Me.,  to  Richmond,  Ya.,  and  from  New  York  to 
Kansas. 

The  necessity  for  direct  communication  between  the  East  and 
the  West,  and  the  economy  of  one  set  of  officers  and  employees 
instead  of  two,  demanded  the  consolidation  of  the  American  and 
the  Western  Union ;  and  the  still  greater  saving  to  all  the  com- 
panies by  the  uniting  of  the  lines  and  offices  of  the  United  States 
with  those  of  the  other  two  equally  necessitated  its  amalgamation 
with  the  others. 


The  capital  of  the  Western  Union  Tele- 
graph Company,  which  had  sold  at  par 
and  over  in  1865,  was 

The  capital  stock  of  the  American  Tele- 
graph Company,  which  sold  at  $180 
per  share  in  1865,  was  .  . 

The  capital  stock  of  the  United  States 
Telegraph  Company  was 


Par  Value. 


Market  Value. 


$22,000,000  $22,000,000 

4,000,000  7,200,000 

11,000,000  11,000,000 

$37,000,000  $40,200,000 


The  proportion  of  lines  and  wires  to  the  capital  varied  with 
each  company,  the  American  company  having  the  greater  num- 
ber ;  and  in  the  terms  of  consolidation  these  differences  were  equit- 
ably arranged,  and  the  capital  stock  of  the  consolidated  company 
was  established  as  follows  :  — 

FINANCIAL    STATISTICS  OF  THE  WESTERN  UNION   TELEGRAPH 

COMPANY. 

CAPITAL    STOCK. 

At  the  date  of  the  Report  of  October,  1865,  the  capital 

stock  of  the  company  issued  was       .         .         .         .         $21.355,100 

It  has  since  been  increased  as  follows :  — 

October,  1865,  by  conversion  of  bonds     .         .      .  .         .'  500 

November,  1865  by  exchange  for  stock  of  California  State 

Telegraph  Company  .         ,         .         .  122,500 

December,      "      by  exchange  for  Lodi  Telegraph  Stock  500 

"  "      by  exchange  for  Trumansburg  and  Seneca 

Falls  Telegraph  Stock,        .         .         .  3,500 

"  "      by  issue  to  Hicks  &  Wright  for  Repeater 

Patent,       ..        *        •     • ;..       .         .  1,500 

"  "      by  exchange  for  Missouri  and  Western 

Telegraph  Stock,        ,..*.*        .  400 

"  "      by  exchange  for  House  Telegraph  Stock,  1,400 

April,          1866,  by  2£  per'cent  Stock  Dividend,  to  equalize 

stock  as  per  Consolidation  Agreements,         472,300 
"      by  consolidation  with  United  States  Tele- 
graph Company,          .         .    .     .         .        3,845,800 
June,  "      by  issue  for  United  States  Pacific  Lines,        3,333,300 

July,  "      by  consolidation  with  American  Telegraph 

Company, 11,818,800 

"  "      by  exchange  for  P.  C.  &  L.  Telegraph 

Stock,    ...         .        ,        .  4,100 

December  1,1 8 67,  by  fractions  converted,  to  date,       .         .  49,100 


Total  present  capital,          . 

Of  the  stock  issued  for  United  States  Pacific 
Lines  there  was  returned  to  the  company, 
as  consideration  for  completing  construction 
of  Pacific  Line,  .  .  *.-''.  . 

The  company  owns  also,          .         .         . 


$41,008,800 


$883,300 
120,800 


$1,004,100 


37 

Out  of  this  we  Lave  issued  for  — 
Southern  Express  Co.'s  Telegraph 

Lines, $150,000 

California    State   Telegraph   Co.'s 

Stock, 124,700 

Other  Telegraph  Lines,         .         .        80,000 

354,700 

Now  owned  by  the  company, 649,400 

Balance,  on  which  we  are  liable  for  dividends,         .  $  40,359,400 

BONDED    DEBT. 

Bonds  of  the  American  Telegraph  Company,  due  in  1873,  .       $  89,500 
Bonds  of  the  Western  Union  Telegraph  Company,  due  in 

1875, 4,857,300 


Total  Bonded  Debt,  December  1,  1867,     .         .         .  $  4,946,800 

The  greater  portion  of  the  debt  of  the  Western  Union  Tele- 
graph Company  was  incurred  in  the  grand  attempt  to  construct  a 
line  on  the  Northwest  Coast,  and  across  Behrings  Strait  to  connect 
with  the  Russian  line  at  the  mouth  of  the  Amoor  River,  known  as 
Collins's  Overland  Line  to  Europe,  which  was  abandoned  on  the 
successful  submergence  and  operation  of  the  Atlantic  Cable. 

The  financial  condition  of  the  Western  Union  Telegraph  Com- 
pany May  1,  1868,  was  as  follows  :  — 

CAPITAL    STOCK. 

At  the  date  of  the  Report  of  January  1,  1868,  the  Capi- 
tal Stock  of  the  Company,  issued,  was,      .         .         .  $  41,008,800.00 

It  has  since  been  increased  as  follows  :  — 
By  exchange  for  United  States  Telegraph 

Stock, $10,800.00 

By  exchange  for  American  Telegraph  Stock,  2,400.00 
By  exchange  for  House  Telegraph  Stock,  .  100.00 
By  fractions  converted,  ....  600.00 

13,900.00 


Total  Capital  Stock  issued  May  1,  1868,    .         .      41,022,700.00 
Of  this  there  is  owned  by  the  Company,  .         .  675,000.00 


Balance  on  which  dividends  are  payable,    .         .  $  40,347,700.00 


38 


BONDED    DEBT. 

Bonds  outstanding  December  1,  1867,  .         .        .         .     $  4,946,800.00 
Bonds  of  1875  since  purchased  and  cancelled,    .         .         .        56,300.00 

Balance  of  Bonded  Debt  May  1,  1868,      .         .     $  4,890,500.00 
Maturing  as  follows:  In  1873,  .         .        $89,500.00 

In  1875,    "  .-        .   '      4,801,000.00 

$  4,890,500.00 


PROPERTY   ACCOUNT. 
I 

Telegraph  Lines  and  Property,  December  1,  1867,        .  $  47,733,640.68 

Since  added, 
By   exchange   of  Stocks,   as    per    Stock 

Account,      .       ...         .       ....     $13,300.00 

By  Application  of  Profits  :  — 

Construction  Account,       .  $  103,592.13 

Purchase  of  Telegraph  Stocks,  23,806.66 

Purchase  of  Real  Estate,  .          3,011.14 

$130,409.93 

$143,709.93 


Total  Property  Account,  May  1,  1868,       ,  '      .  $47,877,350.61 

STOCK,  BOND,  AND  PROPERTY  BALANCES,  MAY  1,  1868. 

Assets.  Liabilities. 

Telegraph    Lines,   Equipment,    Fran- 
chises, etc.,     .         ...        .         .$47,051,358.49 

Western  Union  Telegraph  Stock  owned 

by  Company,      .         .       '  .         .  667,342.50 

Productive  Stock  in  other  Telegraph 

Companies,     ...         .         •         •  52,471.81 

Real  Estate,  .     .'''._     .        .        .  106,177.81 

Capital  Stock,    .'     '.      '.        .        .  $41,022,700.00 

Fractional  Shares,  .     !; -..'''    '.  '       .  15,110.00 

Bonded  Debt,     .         ....  4,890,500.00 

Bond  and  Mortgage,  Buffalo  Property,  15,000.00 

Profits  used  for  Purchase  of  Property, 

and  Redemption  of  Bonds,       .         .  1,934,040-61 

$  47,877,350.61  $  47,877,35.061 


39 


STATEMENT    OF   INCOME    AND    EXPENSES    FROM   JULY    1,    1866,   TO 

NOVEMBER    1,    1868. 
1866. 

July, 

August, 

September, 

October, 

November, 

December, 

January, 

February, 

March, 

April, 

May, 

June, 

July, 

August, 

September, 

October, 

November, 

December, 

1868. 

January,    . 

February, 

March, 

April, 

May, 

June, 

July, 

August, 

September, 

October, 


Gross  Receipts. 

Expenses. 

Net  Profits. 

$562,292.97 

$410,382.40 

$151,910.57 

548,716.96 

346,742.31 

201,974.65 

556,955.95 

298,931.99 

258,023.96 

623,528.31 

344,245.07 

279,283.24 

571,036.02 

322,508.66 

248,527.36 

551,971.40 

302,596.41 

249,374.99 

580,560.53 

341,104.71 

239,455.82 

483,441.77 

314,617.26 

168,824.51 

530,642.66 

297,076.59 

233,566.07 

545,586.30 

320,869.41 

224,716.89 

525,437.94 

326,829.83 

198,608.11 

488,754.55 

318,100.99 

170,653.56 

536,156.89 

360,917.53 

175,239.36 

570,676.85 

.  375,970.17 

194,706.68 

601,548.79 

375,641.50 

225,907.29 

628,836.74 

393,459.92 

235,376.82 

583,723.66 

370,429.57 

213,294.09 

576,135.19 

379,291.35 

196,843.84 

539,794.00 

366,446.02 

173,347.98 

600,183.32 

345,855.52 

254,327.80 

587,962.23 

335,947.64 

252,014.58 

602,257.05 

356,349.18 

245,907.87 

597,374.47 

349,165.41 

248,209.06 

579,911.00 

353,375.50 

226,535.50 

601,730.61 

396,163.66 

205,566.95 

602,304.73 

376,452.03 

225,852.70 

630,665.36 

372,197.50 

258,467.86 

680,311.81 

410,604.17 

269,707.64 

$  1 6,088,498.86       $  9,862,272.31 


$  6,226,225.75 


STATIONS,   LINES,   AND    EMPLOYEES    OF    THE    WESTERN    UNION 
TELEGRAPH   COMPANY. 

The  "Western  Union  Telegraph  Company  alone  has 

3,331  Telegraph  Offices, 
50.760  Miles  of  Line, 
97,416  Miles  of  Telegraphic  Wire, 

265  Submarine  Cables, 
6,389  Skilled  persons  in  its  employ. 


40 


ENGLISH  AND  AMERICAN  TELEGRAPHS  COMPARED. 

It  has  been  shown  that,  several  years  before  there  is  any  record  of 
regular  public  telegraph  business  in  continental  Europe,  the  system 
in  the  United  States  was  in  popular  use.  There  can  be  no  ques- 
tion that  what  restrained  its  use  in  Europe  for  so  many  years  was 
governmental  jealousy  of  its  power,  and  not  ignorance  of  its  ca- 
pacity. The  subject  was  freely  canvassed  in  the  public  prints,  and 
was  familiar  to  the  learned  men  of  all  European  nations.  Even  in 
England,  whose  government  aided  its  introduction  through  private 
enterprise,  the  employment  of  the  telegraph  was  hindered  by  a 
tariff  so  high  as  to  shut  it  out  from  general  use.  Respecting  this 
latter  fact,  so  as  to  give  in  more  marked  contrast  the  early  history 
of  the  telegraph  on  the  two  continents,  a  few  details  are  given. 

The  Electric  Telegraph  Company  of  England  was  incorporated 
in  1846,  and  seems  to  have  made  its  first  work  in  the  connection  of 
the  railway  stations,  post-office,  police,  admiralty,  Houses  of  Parlia- 
ment, Buckingham  Palace,  &c.  As  late  as  1851  only  eighty 
stations  in  the  provinces,  including  the  chief  cities  and  outposts, 
had  been  opened.  Priority  of  service  was  secured  to  the  govern- 
ment, and  the  Secretary  of  State  was  empowered,  on  extraordinary 
occasions,  to  take  possession  of  all  telegraph  stations  and  hold  them 
for  a  week,  with  power  to  continue  so  to  do. 

The  tariff  of  charges  adopted  was,  for  twenty  words,  including 
address  and  signature,  one  penny  per  mile  for  the  first  fifty  miles ; 
one  half-penny  for  the  second  fifty;  and  one  farthing  for  any 
distance  beyond  100  miles.  The  lowest  charge  was  2s.  6c?.,  ster- 
ling. This  tariff  existed  as  late  as  1851.  Compare  these  rates 
with  those  of  the  American  lines  at  the  same  period. 

From  London  to  York,  a  distance  of  about  230  miles,  the  charge 
was  9s.,  equal  to  $  2.25  gold. 

From  New  York  to  Boston,  a  distance  of  220  miles,  the  tariff  for 
ten  words,  exclusive  of  address  and  signature,  was  twenty  cents ! 

From  London  to  Edinburgh,  a  distance  of  about  400  miles,  the 
charge  was  13s.,  or  $  3.25,  while  from  New  York  to  Buffalo,  500 
miles,  the  charge  was  forty  cents.  On  the  English  tariff  of  charges, 
a  message  from  New  York  to  New  Orleans  would  have  been 
$  11.46  ;  the  actual  tariff  was  $  2.50. 


41 


ACKNOWLEDGED  SUPERIORITY  OF  THE  EARLY  AMERICAN 

SERVICE. 

On  this  subject  we  have  the  testimony  of  one  of  the  best  of 
British  popular  publications,  —  "  Chambers' s  Papers  for  the  Peo- 
ple," published  in  1851,  —  whose  words  we  quote  :  — 

"  The  scale  of  charges  in  the  United  States  is  much  lower  than 
in  this  country ;  the  electric  telegraph  is  consequently  more  avail- 
able to  the  greater  part  of  the  population  engaged  in  commercial 
affairs.  *  Apart  from  business  and  politics,  the  Americans  have 
made  the  telegraph  subservient  to  other  uses  ;  medical  practitioners 
in  distant  towns  have  been  consulted,  and  their  prescriptions  trans- 
mitted along  the  wire ;  and  a  short  time  since  a  gallant  gentleman 
in  Boston  married  a  lady  in  New  York  by  telegraph,  —  a  process 
which  may  supersede  the  necessity  for  elopement,  provided  the  law 
hold  the  ceremony  valid.  A  favorable  idea  of  the  immediate  practical 
utility  of  the  telegraph  may  be  gathered  from  a  communication  to  the 
present  writer  from  New  York.  '  The  telegraph,'  he  writes, '  is  used 
in  this  country  by  all  classes  except  the  very  poorest,  the  same  as 
the  mail.  The  most  ordinary  messages  are  sent  in  this  way,  —  a 
joke,  an  invitation  to  a  party,  an  inquiry  about  health,  &c.  At 
the  offices  they  are  accommodating,  and  will  inquire  about  mes- 
sages that  have  miscarried  or  have  not  been  answered,  without 
extra  charge.'  The  lines  in  the  United  States  are  carried  across 
the  country  regardless  of  travelled  thoroughfares  ;  over  tracts  of 
sand  and  swamp,  through  the  wild  primeval  forest  where  man  has 
not  yet  begun  his  contest  with  nature,  where  even  the  rudiments 
of  civilization  are  yet  to  be  learned.  Away  it  stretches,  the  metallic 
indicator  of  intellectual  supremacy,  traversing  regions  haunted  by 
the  rattlesnake  and  the  alligator,  solitudes  that  re-echo  with  noc- 
turnal howlings  of  the  wolf  and  the  bear.  Communications  are 
maintained  from  North  to  South,  East  and  West,  through  all  the 
length  and  breadth  of  the  mighty  Union,  and  with  a  frequency 
and  social  purpose  exceeding  that  of  any  other  nation.  In  one 
stretch,  Maine  and  Vermont,  where  winter  with  deepest  snows  and 
arctic  temperature  usurps  six  months  of  the  year,  are  united  with 
the  lands  of  the  tropics,  where  the  magnolia  blooms  and  palm-trees 
grow  in  perpetual  summer.  Subordinate  lines  bring  the  great 


42 

lakes  —  the  inland  seas  —  into  direct  communication  with  the 
ocean  ports  on  the  eastern  shore.  Nothing  stops  the  restless,  en- 
terprising spirit  of  that  people." 

REMARKABLY  LOW  TARIFFS   OF  THE  EARLY  AMERICAN 
TELEGRAPHS. 

There  is,  indeed,  nothing  more  remarkable  respecting  the  presen- 
tation of  any  great  invention  to  the  public  than  the  fact  that  the 
electric  telegraph  in  America  was  thrown  open  to  the  public,  in  its 
very  inception,  at  the  lowest  tariff  which  has  yet,  under  all  the 
excitement  of  opposition,  been  adopted. 

What  was  true  of  Great  Britain  with  respect  to  tariffs  during 
the  early  years  of  the  introduction  of  the  telegraph  applies,  as  has 
been  seen,  equally  to  France  and  the  other  European  states. 
Every  tariff  adopted  was,  to  a  large  extent,  prohibitory,  and  the 
facts  connected  with  these  years  utterly  falsify  the  statement  that 
Europe  has  shown  (untiLwithin  a  very  few  years)  anything  like 
the  spirit  of  liberality  which  private  companies  in  the  United 
States  have  manifested  in  this  matter. 

Since  these  early  years  no  advance  was  made  in  our  tariffs  until 
the  third  year  of  the  rebellion,  when  the  depreciation  of  the  cur- 
rency necessitated  the  increasing  of  the  salaries  of  employees  from 
fifty  to  one  hundred  per  cent,  and  enhanced  the  price  of  material 
in  a  corresponding  ratio,  compelling  a  considerable  increase  of  the 
tariff  on  despatches.  Since  the  war  closed,  most  of  the  important 
tariffs  have  been  reduced  to  their  original  standard,  without  any 
corresponding  reduction  of  the  price  of  material  or  labor. 

In  contrast  with  this,  we  need  only  to  point  to  the  large  ad- 
vance in  railway  fares  and  transportation,  in  the  cost  of  enter- 
tainment at  hotels,  in  the  prices  of  daily  newspapers,  and  in  that 
of  almost  every  commodity  or  service  which  the  people  enjoy;  and 
yet  the  telegraph,  like  all  other  enterprises,  has  been  burdened 
with  the  same  increase  in  the  cost  of  labor  and  materials. 


NO  SIMILARITY  BETWEEN  THE  TELEGRAPH  AND  POSTAL 
SYSTEMS. 

The  idea  which  has  been  repeatedly  broached,  that  the  telegraph 
and  postal  communication  are  in  the  same  category,  is  entirely  fal- 
lacious. The  telegraph  does  that  which  the  post  cannot  do,  and 
which,  before  the  telegraph  was  invented,  remained  undone.  If  the 
public  use  the  telegraph  at  a  cost  of  25  cents  when  they  might 
use  the  mail  at  a  cost  of  three  cents,  it  is  obvious  that  the  use  of 
the  telegraph  implies  something  essentially  different  from  the  use 
of  the  post.  If  they  use  the  post,  with  its  tardy  departure  and  de- 
livery, instead  of  the  telegraph  with  its  instant  and  continuous 
departure  and  delivery,  it  is  equally  obvious  that  there  is  some- 
thing implied  in  the  use  of  the  post  that  is  not  to  be  obtained  by 
the  use  of  the  telegraph. 

Postal  correspondence  and  telegraph  communication  are  two 
very  distinct  things. 

A  telegram  announces  sudden  illness  ;  death ;  an  accident ; 
prices  of  gold  every  five  minutes  ;  prices  of  stocks  every  hour ;  sud- 
den fluctuations  in  the  values  of  commodities  ;  orders  rooms  at  a 
hotel,  while  the  sender  is  en  route  and  flying  to  the  distant  city  as 
rapidly  as  steam  can  carry  him  ;  countermands  orders  and  instruc- 
tions contained  in  letters  sent  by  post ;  orders  letters  to  be  returned 
unopened  ;  orders  the  arrest  of  fugitives  from  justice  after  they 
have  taken  their  departure  on  the  railway ;  orders  the  search  for  a 
package  left  in  the  cars,  and  its  return  by  a  succeeding  train ; 
announces  that  the  Merrimac  has  destroyed  several  ships  of  war, 
and  may  get  to  sea  in  spite  of  the  Monitor  and  ravage  the  coast ; 
announces  that  the  flag  has  been  fired  upon  at  Charleston,  and  in 
twenty  minutes  arouses  the  entire  nation.  None  of  these  things 
are  possible  for  the  post.  Before  a  letter  could  convey  the  intelli- 
gence of  the  sudden  illness,  the  patient  is  dead,  or  convalescent ; 
the  dead  is  buried  ;  gold  has  changed  in  price  a  hundred  times ; 
stocks  have  gone  up  and  down ;  the  man  arrives  at  his  hotel  twenty- 
four  hours  in  advance  of  his  letter ;  the  instructions  in  the  letters  have 
been  acted  upon,  and  no  subsequent  ones  can  repair  the  damage  ; 
the  fugitive  from  justice  escapes  out  of  the  country ;  the  package 
left  in  the  cars  is  irretrievably  lost ;  the  Merrimac  has  been  sent  to 


44 

the  bottom,  and  the  alarm  caused  by  the  tidings  through  the  post, 
which  must  continue  until  another  arrival,  is  groundless ;  and  the 
flag  has  been  insulted  a  month,  before  all  the  patriots  of  the  coun- 
try have  heard  the  tidings  by  the  slow,  plodding  mail. 

The  telegram  is  often  the  index  to  the  more  full  and  copious 
information  conveyed  by  the  post,  but  it  does  not  supersede  it. 
There  is  no  similarity  in  the  conveyance  of  matter  by  post  or 
telegraph. 

A  letter  deposited  in  a  post-office  is  placed  in  a  bag,  and  carried 
to  its  destination  with  no  less  labor  and  expense  than  if  ten  letters 
were  so  deposited.  The  time  taken  in  transport  is  the  same.  A 
leather  bag  covers  a  thousand  letters  as  easily  as  a  solitary  note. 
It  was  this  fact  which  led  to  the  reduction  of  postage.  But  it  was 
accomplished  without  the  loss  of  an  hour  to  government,  without 
the  enlargement  of  a  coach,  or  any  considerable  increase  in  the 
compensation  paid  for  the  service.  It  involved  no  new  brain- 
labor,  no  new  responsibilities,  no  new  expense.  Under  such  cir- 
cumstances high  postage  was  a  folly,  and  to  return  to  it  would  be 
almost  a  crime. 

A  communication  by  telegraph,  on  the  contrary,  demands  a 
calm,  unoccupied  brain,  and  a  steady  hand  to  manipulate  its  con- 
tents, letter  by  letter.  A  slip  of  the  finger  from  the  manipulating 
key  changes  its  meaning ;  a  truant  thought  alters  the  manuscript ; 
a  shadow  of  forgetfulness  mars  its  whole  design.  It  demands  a 
whole  wire  for  its  use,  and  a  given  time  for  its  solitary  passage. 
Hence  the  necessity  for  multiplying  the  wires  and  enlarging  the 
operating  staff. 

Added  to  all  this  is  the  necessity  for  repeating  this  process  when 
destined  to  any  point  not  directly  reached  by  the  originating 
office. 

Over  and  over  again  have  many  of  the  messages  left  in  the  hands 
of  telegraph  companies  to  be  translated  or  re-written  before  they 
reach  their  destination  ;  very  different  from  the  sealed  letter,  which 
needs  but  the  toss  of  a  practised  hand  to  change  its  route  and  put 
it  under  the  cover  of  a  new  bag. 

The  difference  between  the  use  of  the  post  and  telegraph  is  well 
shown  by  the  practice  of  the  Western  Union  Telegraph  Company, 
which  requires  all  of  its  employees  to  use  the  mail,  instead  of  the 


45 

telegraph,  in  every  case  where  the  interests  of  the  company  will 
not  suffer  by  the  delay.  All  check  errors,  and  discrepancies  in  ac- 
counts, are  settled  by  correspondence  through  the  mail,  where  the 
same  might  be  done  more  readily,  though  at  far  greater  expense, 
by  the  use  of  the  wires.  Now,  if  the  company  owning  the  lines, 
and  working  them,  can  better  afford  to  pay  the  postage  on  its  com- 
munications, than  to  block  up  the  wires  with  its  own  free  business,  it 
shows  a  very  radical  difference  between  the  expense  of  transmitting 
matter  by  steam,  or  horse-power,  and  doing  the  same  by  electricity. 

COLLECTION  AND  DELIVERY  OF  TELEGRAMS  BY  LETTER- 
CARRIERS  IMPRACTICABLE. 

The  plan  proposed  for  the  collection  and  delivery  of  tele- 
grams by  letter-carriers  is  equally  impracticable.  The  rapid 
and  safe  delivery  of  messages  is  the  great  difficulty  with  which 
the  telegraph  companies  have  to  contend,  and  the  amount  paid 
for  this  service  forms  a  very  material  portion  of  the  expense  at- 
tending the  operation  of  the  system.  How  would  this  service  be 
performed  if  left  to  the  Post-Office  Department  ?  In  1865  — 
the  last  year  containing  the  statistics  of  the  number  of  letters 
sent  through  the  United  States  mail  —  the  Postmaster-General 
estimates  the  number  of  letters  transmitted  at  467,591,600.  No 
statement  of  the  total  number  of  letters  delivered  by  carrier  in  the 
United  States  is  given  in  the  Postmaster-General's  reports  for 
1865  or  1866,  but  he  states  that  the  number  of  cities  at  which  free 
delivery  is  established  is  46,  and  the  total  number  of  carriers,  863; 
that  582  carriers  are  attached  to  ten  offices,  from  which  are  deliv- 
ered 38,060,009  letters.  If  the  remaining  281  carriers,  who  are 
distributed  among  36  offices,  deliver  as  many  in  proportion,  we 
have  a  total  of  56,446,004  letters  delivered  for  the  year,  or  about 
nine  per  cent  of  the  whole  number  transmitted  through  the  mail. 
This  does  not  present  a  very  flattering  result,  and  does  not  argue 
very  favorably  for  the  satisfactory  delivery  of  thirteen  millions  of 
telegrams,  through  the  same  channel,  at  over  4,000  offices  ! 

Compare  with  these  meagre  results  the  operations  of  the  British 
Post-Office,  which  employs  11,449  carriers,  and  annually  delivers 
705,000,000  letters. 

As  for  the   collection  of  telegrams  from  street  boxes,  the  very 


46 

idea  is  in  direct  antagonism  to  the  first  principles  of  telegraphic 
communication.  A  street  box  may  answer  the  purpose  of  a  place 
of  deposit  for  a  letter  intended  for  the  next  day's  mail,  but  those 
who  desire  to  communicate  by  telegraph  want  immediate  and 
speedy  communication.  They  require  their  message  conveyed, 
and  very  frequently  answered,  whilst  they  wait  in  the  telegraph 
office.  They  have  no  idea  of  depositing  their  messages  to  await 
the  diurnal  collection  from  the  street  box.  Indeed,  the  idea  is  too 
absurd  to  be  seriously  discussed.  There  are  upwards  of  100 
telegraph  offices  in  the  city  of  New  York  alone,  and  a  proportion- 
ate number  of  branch  offices  in  all  the  cities.  Is  it  probable  that 
persons  who  wish  to  send  a  despatch  will  walk  several  miles  to 
send  it  by  government  line  rather  than  patronize  private  lines 
at  their  own  doors  ? 

We  cannot  think  that  a  department  whose  expenses  exceed  its 
receipts  by  $6,437,991.85  in  a  single  year;  which  cannot  even 
guess  within  a  hundred  millions  of  the  number  of  letters  it  trans- 
mits per  annum  ;  which  provides  only  forty-six  free  delivery  offices 
out  of  a  total  of  29,387  post-offices  in  the  United  States  ;  which 
does  not  even  pretend  to  give  the  number  of  letters  delivered  free 
for  any  one  year ;  and  which  sends  over  4,500,000  letters  to  the 
Dead-Letter  Office  per  annum,  is  a  very  proper  guardian  of  so  im- 
portant an  interest  as  the  Electric  Telegraph. 

The  space  occupied  for  the  various  telegraph  offices  in  all  the 
principal  cities  of  the  United  States  is  considerably  greater  than 
that  required  by  the  post-offices,  while  the  rent  paid  by  our  com- 
pany, owing  to  the  more  central  and  eligible  situations  of  our 
offices,  is  greatly  in  excess  of  that  paid  by  the  Post-Office  De- 
partment. In  New  York,  our  company  pays  $  40,000  per  annum 
for  rent  of  its  central  office  alone.  So  far  as  space  and  eligibility 
of  location  is  concerned,  we  could  much  better  accommodate  the 
public  by  the  delivery  of  their  letters  at  our  numerous  offices,  than 
they  are  now  accommodated  at  the  remote  and  inconvenient  places 
provided  for  them  by  the  government,  and  in  all  respects  wre  could 
much  better  handle  the  mails  than  the  post-office,  as  now  located 
and  generally  conducted,  could  manage  the  telegraph. 


47 


ME.  WASHBURNE'S  PROPOSED  EXPERIMENTAL  LINE. 

Mr.  Washburne  says  :  — 

"  In  the  present  position  of  the  finances  of  the  country,  it  would  hardly 
be  wise  to  enter  upon  an  extended  experiment.  It  should  be  tried  at 
first  on  a  limited  scale,  and  at  small  cost.  If  it  proves  successful,  and 
becomes  what  the  telegraph  under  other  government  control  has  become 
in  other  countries,  —  a  source  of  revenue,  as  well  as  an  inestimable  boon 
to  the  community,  —  it  ought  to  be,  and  doubtless  will  be,  extended.  The 
amount  necessary  to  construct  a  suitable  line  from  Washington  to  New- 
York,  and  to  sustain  it  until  it  becomes  self-sustaining,  will  not  exceed 
$75,000,  and  it  is  the  belief  of  experienced  telegraphers  that,  with  a 
tariff  of  charges  as  low  as  that  of  Belgium  and  Switzerland,  and  with  an 
additional  charge  of  single  postage  upon  each  message,  the  line  would  be 
self-sustaining  from  the  beginning,  and  would  probably  repay  its  entire 
cost  long  before  the  value  of  the  structure  was  materially  impaired." 

The  results  of  lowering  tariffs  for  telegrams  to  a  point  approx- 
imating the  charge  for  letter  postage  has  been  tried  so  often  in 
this  country,  as  not  to  require  a  new  demonstration.  The  follow- 
ing statement  will  show  the  result  of  a  recent  trial  between  the 
two  important  cities  of  Chicago  and  Milwaukee. 

On  the  12th  of  August,  1867,  a  rival  line  was  opened  between 
those  two  points,  having  no  connection  with  any  other  at  either 
end.  The  competition,  therefore,  was  for  local  business  only. 
The  tariff  previously  had  been  sixty  cents.  The  average  number 
of  messages  transmitted  per  day  for  the  ten  days  preceding  the 
beginning  of  business  by  the  new  company  was  sixty-nine,  and 
the  daily  receipts  fifty-five  dollars.  On  the  opening  of  the  rival 
line  the  rate  was  reduced  to  forty  cents,  and  the  average  number 
of  messages  sent  by  both  was  eighty-seven,  the  receipts  forty- 
seven  dollars.  On  the  16th  September  the  rate  was  further  re- 
duced to  twenty  cents,  with  the  following  results  :  Average  num- 
ber of  messages  per  day  for  both  lines,  one.  hundred  and  thirty- 
three.  Average  receipts,  thirty-seven  dollars.  On  November 
8th  the  rate  was  reduced  to  ten  cents,  and  remained  so  for  the 
next  fourteen  days,  during  which  the  number  of  telegrams  trans- 
mitted daily  by  both  lines  was  one  hundred  and  sixty-seven,  and 
the  average  receipts  twenty-six  dollars. 

About  the  20th  November  the  rates  were  advanced  to  forty 
cents,  by  mutual  agreement,  and  afterwards  the  lines  and  records 
of  the  new  company  came  into  our  possession. 


48 


No.  1. 

Statement  showing  number  of  Messages  sent  between  Chicago  and  Milwau- 
kee for  first  twelve  days  in  August,  1867,  at  a  Tariff  of  sixty  cents,  and 
same  for  1868,  at  a  Tariff  of  forty  cents,  together  with  daily  Receipts. 


August,  1867. 

August,  1868. 

Tariff  60  and  4. 

Tariff  40  and  3. 

DATE. 

Sent. 

Received. 

Receipts. 

Sent. 

Received. 

Receipts. 

August               1 

41 

48 

$  67.40 

49 

37 

$39.64 

2 

31 

38 

57.00 

4 

2 

1.87 

<                     3 

36 

25 

49.63 

53 

42 

58.25 

4 

2 

\ 

1.78 

69 

39 

53.02 

5 

41 

34 

55.98 

46 

41 

43.36 

6 

41 

40 

63.39 

67 

46 

54.60 

7 

42 

49 

73.77 

51 

39 

42.44 

8 

45 

27 

55.75 

56 

50 

52.08 

9 

39 

38 

61.68 

10 

40 

40 

63.91 

52 

44 

47.30 

11 

62 

42 

51.70 

Totals     ,     .    .     . 

358 

340 

$550.29 

*509 

382 

$  444.26 

1867,  Average,  69  Messages    $55.00 

1868,          "          89           "              ,         .<-     44.42 

No.  2. 

Statement  showing  the  number  of  Messages  transmitted  between  Chicago 
and  Milwaukee,  over  the  Western  Union  and  Independent  Telegraph 
Lines,  from  August  12 th  to  August  26th,  together  with  the  daily  Receipts. 


Tariff  40  and  3. 

W.  U.  and  Independent. 

Western  Union. 

DATE 

August,  1867. 

August,  1868. 

Sent. 

Received. 

Receipts. 

Sent. 

Received. 

Receipts. 

August               12 

33 

47 

$52.96 

44 

42 

$47.82 

13 

35 

52 

66.35 

49 

38 

50.11 

14 

35 

50 

59.00 

54 

42 

53.35 

15 

44 

46 

55.27 

52 

41 

48.28 

16 

34 

45 

53.61 

1 

.52 

17 

'38 

45 

62.38 

58 

52 

63.21 

'                    18 

2 

2.02 

45 

33 

45.69 

'                    19 

45 

51 

70.45 

40 

45 

52.39 

<                    20 

41 

50 

68.51 

47 

44    H 

64.77 

21 

39 

46 

62.67 

54 

40 

50.22 

22 

37 

39 

49.42 

48 

38 

46.77 

23 

39 

41 

52.97 

3 

2 

2.21 

24 

30 

33 

56.15 

43 

45 

59.57 

25 

2 

2.10 

54 

66 

73.26 

26 

63 

41 

55.31 

48 

57 

62.89 

Totals     .     .     , 

515 

588 

$769.17 

640 

585 

$721.06 

1867,  Average,  73  Messages     $51.28 

1868,          "         81 

48.07 

49 

Statement  No.  1  exhibits  a  comparison  for  the  first  ten  days  of 
August,  1867,  before  the  opening  of  the  rival  line,  and  when  the 
tariff  was  sixty  cents,  with  the  same  period  in  1868  after  the  tariff 
had  been  forty  cents  for  nearly  a  year.  Statement  No.  2  makes  a 
similar  comparison  between  the  aggregate  business  of  the  Western 
Union  and  the  competing  line  for  the  first  fifteen  days  after  the 
latter  opened  in  1867,  and  the  same  period  in  1868,  when,  although 
the  rate  was  the  same,  there  was  no  competition.  By  Table  No.  1 
it  appears  that,  at  a  tariff  of  sixty  cents,  the  number  of  messages 
per  day  last  year  was  sixty-nine,  and  the  receipts  therefor  fifty- 
five  dollars.  That  during  the  same  period  this  year,  at  a  reduc- 
tion of  one  third  in  the  tariff,  there  was  an  increase  of  about 
thirty-three  and  one  third  per  cent  in  the  number  of  messages,  but 
a  loss  in  revenue  of  twenty  per  cent.  In  other  words,  our  work 
has  been  considerably,,  increased,  and  our  compensation  therefor 
sensibly  diminished.  Statement  No.  2  shows  that  last  year,  under 
the  stimulus  of  active  competition,  and  a  reduction  in  rates  of 
one  third,  the  average  number  of  messages  per  day  for  fifteen 
days  was  but  four  more  than  for  the  ten  days  next  preceding.  It 
also  shows  that,  after  the  reduced  rate  had  been  in  operation  a 
year,  and,  notwithstanding  the  fact  that  the  telegraph  business  in 
all  sections  of  the  country  in  the  iriTmth  of  August  this  year  was 
somewhat  larger  than  last,  the  average  had  been  increased  but 
eight  messages  per  day,  and  this  increase  was  attended  by  a  loss 
of  over  three  dollars  per  day  in  the  revenue. 

From  September  1  to  November  3,  1868,  the  number  of 
messages  transmitted  per  day  between  these  places  was  one 
hundred  four  and  a  quarter,  and  the  average  daily  receipts 
$56.41. 

On  the  4th  of  November  another  rival  line  was  opened  be- 
tween Chicago  and  Milwaukee,  but  no  change  in  rates  was  in- 
troduced until  the  24th  of  November.  The  average  number  of 
messages  transmitted  per  day  by  the  Western  Union  Telegraph 
Company  between  these  places,  from  the  4th  to  the  28d  of 
November,  inclusive,  was  seventy-eight,  and  the  daily  receipts 
$43.27. 

On  the  24th  of  November  the  rates  were  reduced  to  twenty 
cents  per  message,  with  the  following  results :  Average  number  of 
4 


50 


messages  transmitted  per  day  between  Chicago  and  Milwaukee 
by  the  Western  Union  Telegraph  Company,  sixty-eight;  average 
daily  receipts,  $  24.59. 

It  should  be  remembered  that  the  business  from  which  these  ex- 
hibits are  derived  is  between  two  of  the  most  important  inland 
commercial  cities  in  the  country.  Both  are  largely  interested 
in  two  important  branches  of  commerce,  —  grain  and  lumber; 
and  probably  no  other  points  could  be  selected  from  which  more 
reliable  results  could  be  obtained. 

The  reason  why  the  Chicago  and  Milwaukee  table  is  the  only 
one  given  to  show  the  results  of  competition  is,  that  such  com- 
parisons are  only  valuable  when  they  exhibit  the  effect  upon  the 
business  of  both  competitors.  This  is  impossible  in  other  cases, 
because  our  opponents  will  not  furnish  us  with  their  figures.  .  We 
have*  written  to  every  Telegraph  Company  in  the  United  States 
for  such  statistics  for  publication,  but  none  of  them  has  responded 
to  our  request.  •*.  • 

LONDON  DISTRICT  TELEGRAPH  COMPANY. 

We  copy  the  following  official  statement  of  the  London  District 
Telegraph  Company  from  the  Telegraphic  Journal,  London,  July 
30,  1864.  The  capital  of  th*e  company  is  £  60.000,  and  the  aver- 
age cost  of  telegrams  transmitted  over  its  lines,  for  distances  that 
cannot  exceed  ten  miles,  was  6c?.,  equal  to  eighteen  cents  in  our 
currency,  and  yet  the  loss  in  four  and  a  half  years'  business  was 
£  9,573  3s.  Id.  :  — 

Statement  showing  the  Receipts  and  Expenditures  of  the  London  District 
Telegraph  Company  from  December,  1859,  to  June,  1864. 


Half-year  ending 

Number  of 
Messages. 

Receipts  for 
Messages. 

Expenditures. 

Deficiency. 

June            1860 

26,155 

£     s.    d. 
550  19  11 

£     s.    d. 
2  282  10     7 

£     s.   d. 
i  326     2     4 

December,  1860  

47,365 

1,058  19     2 

3  294     0     6 

2  168     1     7 

June,           1861  
December  1861     .  .. 

64,785 
77,939 

2,137     1     7 
2,592  15  10 

4,394  12     3 
4  663     5     4 

2,177  11     4 
1  995  13     7 

June            1862 

123,280 

3  956     4     8 

5*077  17  11 

1  077  15     4 

December  1862 

124  222 

3  999     3     2 

4  958     4     2 

894     0     4 

June,           1863  

129,710 

4,216     6  11 

4  721     1     3 

440     9     4 

December,  1  863  

131,216 

4,326     4     0 

5  125     9     4 

796  15     4 

June            1864. 

152,795 

4  802  10     0 

4  863  17  10 

60  12     0 

51 


The  Directors  of  the  above  company  express  much  satisfaction 
in  being  able  to  present  to  the  shareholders  so  favorable  a  statement 
of  its  business  ;  but  it  strikes  us  that  a  system  which  entailed  a 
net  loss  of  one  sixth  of  the  capital  invested  in  a  little  over  four 
years  is  not  a  desirable  one  for  imitation. 

TELEGRAPHS  UNDER  GOVERNMENT  AND  PRIVATE  CONTROL 

COMPARED. 

The  assertion  that  the  Telegraph  facilities  are  better  in  those 
countries  where  it  is  under  governmental  control  than  in  those 
where  it  is  left  to  private  enterprise  is  entirely  erroneous,  as  the 
following  tables,  compiled  from  official  data,  will  show. 

Statistics  of  Telegraphs  constructed  and  operated  under   Government 

Control 


NAME  OF  COUNTRY. 

Number 
of 
Offices. 

Number 
of  Miles 
of  Line. 

Number  of 
Miles  of 
Wire. 

Number  of 
Messages 
Sent. 

Population. 

Proportion  of 
Offices  to 
Population. 

Austria 

851 

24,618 

73,854 

2,507,472 

39,411,309 

to    46,311 

Belgium 

356 

2,187 

6,146 

1,128,005 

4,984,451 

to     14,000 

Bavaria 

2,115 

4,945 

4,541,556 

Denmark 

89 

2,5  1  5 

308,150 

2.468,713 

to    27,000 

France 

1,209 

20,628 

68,687 

2,507,472 

38,302,625 

to    31,600 

Italy    . 

529 

8,200 

20,120 

1,760,889 

25,925,717 

to    49,000 

Norway 

73 

269,375 

1,433,488 

to    19,000 

Prussia 

538 

18,386 

55,149 

1,964,003 

17,739,913 

to    33,000 

Russia 

308 

12,013 

22,214 

838,653 

68,224,832 

to  221,000 

Switzerland 

252 

1,858 

3,717 

668,916 

2,510,494 

to    10,000 

Spain  . 

142 

8,871 

17,743 

533,376 

16,302,625 

to  109,000 

4,347 

98,876 

275,090 

12,486,311 

Statistics  of  Telegraphs  constructed  and  operated  under  Private  Control. 


NAME  OF  COUNTRY. 

Number 
of 
Offices. 

Number 
of  Miles 
of  Line. 

Number  of 
Miles  of 
Wire. 

Number  of 
Messages 
Sent. 

Population. 

Proportion  of 
Offices  to 
Population. 

Great  Britain  and 
Ireland      .     . 
Dominion  of  Can- 
ada     .... 

United  States     . 

2,151 

382 

4,126 

16,588 

6,747 
62,782 

80,466 

8,935 
125,564 

5,781,189 

573,219 
12,386,952 

29,591,009 

3,976,224 
31,148,047 

1  to     13,714 

1  to     10,400 
1  to      7,549 

6,659 

86,117 

214,965      18,741,360 

Thus  it  will  be  seen  that  Continental  Europe,  where  the  tele- 
graphs are  under  government  control,  furnishes  but  4,347  offices 


52 

for  a  population  of  over  250,000,000,  while  Great  Britain,  the 
Dominion  of  Canada,  and  the  United  States,  where  telegraphy  has 
been  left  -to  the  control  of  the  people,  untrammelled  by  governmen- 
tal interference,  monopoly,  or  restriction,  furnish  6,659  offices  for 
a  population  of  64,000,000  !  The  number  of  telegrams  transmitted 
per  annum  in  Continental  Europe  is  only  12,486,311,  while  there 
were  sent  by  the  people  of  the  three  countries  where  it  has  hitherto 
been  free  from  government  repression,  18,741,360.  The  tariff  of 
charges  in  Continental  Europe  averages  eighty-one  cents  per  mes- 
sage, while  in  the  three  countries  where  the  people  manage  the 
business  it  averages  but  fifty-one  cents. 

Private  enterprise  alone  laid  the  submarine  cables  through  the 
Persian  Gulf  and  Mediterranean  Sea,  across  the  Gulf  of  St.  Law- 
rence, the  Vineyard  Sound,  the  Strait  of  Florida,  the  English 
Channel,  the  North  Sea,  and  the  German  and  Atlantic  Oceans. 

THE  TELEGRAPH  AND  THE  PRESS. 

In  nothing,  perhaps,  is  the  superiority  of  private  enterprise  over 
governmental  control  more  strongly  marked  than  in  the  extraordi- 
nary amount  of  news  furnished  to  the  press  of  the  United  States, 
as  contrasted  by  the  meagre  supply  of  the  European  journals. 

By  a  system  of  co-operation  among  the  newspapers  of  the 
United  States  and  the  Western  Union  Telegraph  Company,  the 
news  of  the  world  is  daily  furnished  to  the  people  of  every  por- 
tion of  this  country  at  a  price  within  the  reach  of  the  poorest 
citizen. 

On  page  8  we  have  shown  that  294,503,630  words  are  an- 
nually furnished  to  the  newspapers  of  the  United  States,  at  an 
average  cost  of  less  than  two  mills  per  word.  This  immense 
amount  of  matter  is  not  transmitted  to  each  newspaper  separately, 
but  through  a  combination  of  wires  only  possible  to  a  vast  system 
like  that  owned  by  the  Western  Union  Telegraph  Company,  it  is 
sent  to  a  large  number  of  places  simultaneously,  with  only  one 
transmission. 

The  newspapers  of  the  United  States  are  associated  together  on 
the  co-operative  system.  There  is  a  general  association  having  its 
headquarters  in  New  York,  which  collects  news  from  every  part 


53 

of  the  world  ;  and  there  are  local  associations  in  every  section  of 
the  country,  which  furnish  their  quota  of  intelligence  to  the  gen- 
eral association,  and  receive  in  return  such  news  as  they  require. 

As  an  illustration  of  the  manner  in  which  this  service  is  per- 
formed, we  will 'take  the  State  press  of  New  York  for  an  example. 
The  report  is  compiled  by  the  agent  of  the  Association  for  the 
various  editions  of  the  newspapers  requiring  it,  and  it  is  then 
handed  to  the  telegrapher,  who  with  the  manipulation  of  his 
magic  key  transmits  it  simultaneously  to  Poughkeepsie,  Hudson, 
Albany,  Troy,  Utica,  Syracuse,  Auburn,  Elmira,  Binghamton, 
Owego,  Rome,  Oswego,  Rochester,  and  Buffalo,  New  York,  to 
Rutland  arid  Burlington,  Vermont,  and  to  Scranton,  Pennsylvania. 
These  stations  are  not  all  on  a  single  wire,  nor  on  the  same  route, 
and  the  question  may  be  asked,  How  can  they  all  receive  the  same 
information  from  a  single  impulse  ?  This  is  accomplished  by  a 
combination  of  circuits  through  an  instrument  called  a  repeater, 
by  which  the  intelligence  can  be  transmitted  to  a  thousand  offices 
as  easily  as  to  one. 

The  news  is  sent  to  the  Eastern  press  in  a  similar  manner.  The 
manipulation  of  the  key  at  New  York  transmits  the  report  simul- 
taneously to  Bridgeport,  New  Haven,  Hartford,  Waterbury,  and 
Norwich,  Conn.,  Providence,  R.  I.,  and  to  Springfield,  Worcester, 
Boston,  Fall  River  and  New  Bedford,  Mass. 

The  operator  at  each  of  these  places  receives  the  reports  by  the 
click  of  the  instruments,  —  reading  by  the  sound  of  the  arma- 
ture, —  and  with  an  agate  pen  copies  them  upon  manifold  paper, 
making  as  many  impressions  as  are  necessary  to  furnish  each  paper 
witli  a  duplicate  copy. 

Direct  wires  carry  and  bring  news  from  and  to  Chicago,  Cincin- 
nati, St.  Louis,  Washington,  New  Orleans,  Plaister  Cove,  and 
other  important  points.  Sixteen  wires  work  out  of  New  York 
every  night  to  transmit  or  receive  news  reports,  and  all  over  the 
United  States  the  ubiquitous  iron  threads  are  permeated  by  the 
subtile  and  invisible  fluid  during  all  the  silent  hours  of  the  night, 
conveying  intelligence  of  passing  events  in  all  sections  of  the 
civilized  world  for  publication  in  the  morning  journals  throughout 
the  country. 

It  is  a  singular  and  suggestive  fact,  that  the  amount  of  news 


54 


which  we  furnish  to  the  press  of  the  United  States,  for  an 
aggregate  sum  of  8521,50?),  is  considerably  greater  than  the 
entire  telegraphic  correspondence  of  Continental  Europe,  for 
which  the  paternal  governments  of  those  enlightened  and  enter- 
prising peoples  receive  $  11,597,632.71. 

The  following  table  will  serve  to  show  the  remarkable  contrast, 
in  this  respect,  between  the  systems  under  government  and  pri- 
vate control.  The  number  of  messages  delivered  to  the  press  are 
obtained  for  this  comparison  by  dividing  the  total  number  of 
words  furnished  to  the  press  by  20,  the  European  standard :  — 

Statement  showing  the  Average  Cost  of  Telegrams  in  Continental  Europe 
and  the  Average  Cost  of  Press  Telegrams  in  the  United  States,  with 
Total  Amount  of  each  per  annum. 


Total  number  of  messages 
transmitted  in  Continental 
Europe  for  the  year  1866,    12,902,538 
Gross   receipts   for  the 

Total  number  of  messages 
furnished"  to  the  newspa- 
pers of  the  United  States 
for  1866  14,725,181 

above,  $  11,597,632.71 

Gross  receipts  for  the  above,.   $  521,509 

Average  cost  of  telegrams  in  Con- 
tinental Europe      81  cts. 

Average  cost  of  press  telegrams 
in  the  United  States  3^-  cts. 

The  above  exhibit  illustrates  the  difference  between  what  can 
be  accomplished  under  a  popular  government  which  leaves  the 
press  and  telegraph  free  and  untrammelled,  and  the  results  of  the 
paternal  system  which  the  governments  of  Continental  Europe  im- 
pose upon  their  subjects.  For  these  great  benefits  the  people  of  this 
country  are  indebted  to  the  government  for  the  one  negative  quality 
of  letting  the  press  and  telegraph  alone.  For  the  positive  quality 
which  actually  provides  them  they  are  solely  indebted  to  the  enter- 
prise and  public  spirit  of  the  press,  and  the  Western  Union  Tele- 
graph Company,  the  latter  furnishing  the  reports  at  -a  price  which 
barely  covers  the  cost  of  service  employed  in  transmitting  them, 
and  leaving  nothing  to  defray  the  expense  of  the  wear  of  the  lines, 
or  interest  on  the  investments  for  their  construction. 

In  no  other  country  in  the  world  is  there  such  a  system,  and  in 
none  can  there  ever  be,  until  the  policy  of  our  government  is 
imitated,  and  the  people  left  to  manage  their  own  private  affairs, 
leaving  the  press  and  the  telegraph  free  and  untrammelled  by 


55 

governmental  control  or  repression.  What  our  government,  with 
such  an  example  already  set,  might  be  able  or  disposed  to  do, 
in  the  event  of  its  monopolizing  the  telegraphs,  it  is  impossible  to 
say  ;  but  it  is  unquestionably  true,  that  no  other  government  has 
ever  made  such  a  use  of  them  to  promote  the  education  and  gen- 
eral well-being  of  its  people. 

We  believe  it  would  prove  a  serious  misfortune  to  the  press  and 
the  people,  if  the  government  were  to  destroy,  by  its  interference, 
this  admirable  co-operative  system  of  obtaining  telegraphic  news  at 
such  low  rates. 

The  tariff  for  special  press  reports  is  as  follows :  For  the  first 
one  hundred  words,  full  rates ;  for  the  next  -four  hundred  words, 
a  discount  of  thirty-three  and  one  third  per  cent ;  for  the  next 
five  hundred  words,  one  half  the  ordinary  tariff;  and  all  over  one 
thousand  words,  a  discount  is  made  of  sixty-six  and  two  thirds  per 
cent. 

Mr.  Washburne's  bill  provides  for  a  general  tariff  of  one  cent 
per  word  for  telegrams,  with  an  additional  charge  of  three  cents 
for  postage,  and  two  cents  for  delivery,  and  stipulates  that  a  re- 
duction of  not  more  than  fifty  per  cent  shall  be  made  for  press 
reports.  This  rate  would  increase  the  average  cost  of  news  for  the 
press  of  the  United  States  more  than  three  hundred  per  cent,  and 
thus  the  newspapers  would  be  compelled  to  pay  an  extra  tax  of  a 
million  dollars  per  annum  for  the  privileges  they  now  enjoy. 

If  these  facts  show  any  results  to  warrant  governmental  assump- 
tion or  interference  in  the  business  of  telegraphing,  we  fail  to  per- 
ceive them. 


REYIEW 


MR.     GARDINER    G.    HUBBARD'S    LETTER    TO    THE 

POSTMASTER-GENERAL  ON  THE  EUROPEAN  AND 

AMERICAN  SYSTEMS  OF  TELEGRAPH. 


WE  have  recently  received  a  pamphlet  from  Gardiner  G.  Hub- 
bard,  Esq.,  of  Boston,  entitled  a  "  Letter  to  the  Postmaster-Gen- 
eral on  the  European  and  American  Systems  of  Telegraph,  with 
Remedy  for  the  present  High  Rates,"  which  we  will  briefly  review. 

Mr.  Hubbard  commences  by  saying:  — 

"The  reasons  that  have  induced  the  public  to  commit  to  the 
government  -the  transmission  of  the  mails  by  rail  have  induced 
most  civilized  nations  to  intrust  it  with  the  duty  of  transmitting 
correspondence  by  telegraph.  England  and  America  are  the  only 
important  exceptions." 

As  England  and  America  are  the  only  "  civilized  nations " 
where  the  public  have  any  control  of  such  matters,  there  need  be 
no  further  discussion  of  this  proposition. 

ERRONEOUS  STATEMENTS  RELATIVE  TO  BELGIAN  TELEGRAPHS. 

Alluding  to  the  Belgian  telegraph,  Mr.  Hubbard  says :  — 

u  In  1850  the  private  lines  then  in  operation  were  purchased  by 
the  government,  and  have  since  been  under  its  management. 
The  rates  were  originally  one  franc  and  a  half  for  a  message  of 
twenty  words.  At  these  rates,  the  telegraph  was  little  used  for 
inland  messages,  and  its  development  was  very  slow.  In  Jan-- 
uary,  1863,  they  were  reduced  to  one  franc,  and"  December,  1865, 
to  half  a  franc." 

By  referring  to   the    official   tables   published   by  the    Belgian 


government,  on  page  94,  it  will  be  seen  that  the  average  cost  per 
message  on  the  Belgian  lines  in  1851  and  1852  was  over  6  francs ; 
in  1853,  5.10  francs ;  1854  and  1855,  over  4  francs;  in  1856  and 
1857,  3.62  and  3.42  francs ;  from  1858  to  1862,  over  2  francs ; 
and  even  in  1867  they  averaged  0.85  francs. 
We  quote  from  Mr.  Hubbard  again :  — 

"In  1862,  the  inland  messages,  at  1^  francs,  numbered  105,274 
"  1865,   «        "  "          at  1  franc,  "        332,718 

«  1867,   «        "  «          at  £  franc,  "        819,668 

Total  receipts  in  1866, 961,112  francs. 

"    expenses  in    " 839,000      " 

Estimated  profits  for  1866  on  the  enfire  business,  if  no 

reduction  bad  been  made,.         ....  198,499       " 

Actual  profits  for  1866,  under  the  reduced  rates,          .       122,112       " 

Actual  loss  by  reducing  the  rates  on   inland  messages 

one  half, 76,387       " 

By  an  examination  of  Table  H,  page  96,  it  will  be  seen  that 
the  total  receipts  of  the  Belgian  telegraphs  for  1866  were  962,213 
francs;  expenditures,  1,217,496  francs;  loss,  255,283  francs.  Of 
the  receipts  only  407,532  francs  were  for  inland  messages,  of  which 
there  were  transmitted  692,536,  while  553,580  -francs  were  re- 
ceived for  435,469  international  and  transit  messages.  As  before 
stated,  the  expense  of  service  upon  transit  messages  is  merely 
nominal.  They  simply  pass  through  the  kingdom,  and  require  no 
labor  in  receiving,  transmitting,  or  delivery.  The  greater  part  of 
the  expense,  therefore,  was  incurred  upon  the  inland  messages ; 
and,  had  not  the  Belgian  administration  imposed  a  tax  upon  neigh- 
boring nations  of  553,580  francs  for  messages  coming  from  or  go- 
ing to  other  countries,  there  would  have  been  a  deficit  of  809,964 
francs  on  the  year's  business  instead  of  255,283  francs. 

We  quote  from  Mr.  Hubbard  :  — 

"  A  system  of  railroads  is  also  owned  and  operated  by  the  gov- 
ernment, and  the  telegraph  is  connected  with  both  the  railroad  and 
the  post.  A  large  proportion  of  the  offices  are  at  the  railway 
stations,  but  every  post-office  is  an  office  of  deposit,  from  which 
messages  are  despatched  at  once,  free  of  charge,  to  the  nearest 
telegraph  office,  when  in  the  same  district ;  otherwise,  by  the  first 
messenger  or  by  special  carrier,  on  payment  of  an  extra  rate  for 
porterage.  This  union  of  the  telegraph  with  the  post  and  railroad 


58 

reduces  the  expenses  for  operators,  clerks,  general  management, 
rent  and  office  expenses,  and  brings  the  system  into  close  connec- 
tion with  every  citizen. 

"  The  rates  are  prepaid  by  stamps,  and  are  uniform  and  low. 
The  rate  for  all  inland  messages  by  telegraph,  or  by  telegraph  and 
post  where  the  place  of  deposit  or  delivery  is  not  on  the  line  of  the 
telegraph,  is  one  half  franc  [or  thirteen  and  a  half  cents  cur- 
rency]." 

BELGIAN  TELEGRAMS  DELIVERED  BY  POST. 

In  reply  to  this  flattering  picture  of  the  Belgian  system  of  tele- 
graphy we  quote  the  following  from  a  recent  English  publica- 
tion :  *  — 

"  The  government  of  Belgium  not  only  have  a  monopoly  of  the 
telegraphs  and  post-office,  but  also  of  most  of  the  railways  of  the 
country.  They  work  the  system  as  a  whole.  In  the  case  of 
ordinary  half-franc  telegrams,  the  messages  are  not  uniformly  de- 
spatched by  messenger  from  the  office  at  which  they  arrive,  but 
are  sent  to  the  residence  of  the  receiver  by  post ! 

*'  The  administration  of  the  Belgian  telegraph  in  no  respect  holds 
itself  responsible  for  the  delivery  of  a  message,  unless  it  is  specially 
insured  and  Additionally  paid  for.  They  decline  all  responsibility 
on  account  of  delay  in  the  transmission  or  non-arrival  of  a  half- 
franc  telegram.  They  will  not  even  inquire  into  the  cause  of  delay 
of  a  half -franc  telegram  !  No  matter  how  long  a  message  has  taken 
in  delivery,  or  whatever  may  be  the  errors  in  it,  the  government 
will  make  no  compensation  to  the  sender  or  receiver,  except  under 
very  exceptional  circumstances.  Moreover,  the  twenty  words  for- 
warded for  half  a  franc  includes  addresses  both  of  sender  and 
receiver,  4  all  of  which  is  free  in  this  country.' " 

For  further  particulars  relative  to  the  Belgian  telegraph  service 
reference  is  made  to  pages  5,  7,  8,  13,  16  -  24. 

WANT   OF  UNIFORMITY  IN    RATES. 

We  quote  from  Mr.   Hubbard :  — 

"  There  is  no  uniformity  in  the  rates.  They  are  often  less  to  a 
distant  station  than  to  an  intermediate  one  on  the  same  line.  An 

*  Government  and  the  Telegraphs.    London,  1868. 


59 

estimate  of  the  average  rates,  and  of  the  annual  number  of  mes- 
sages transmitted  has  been  made  by  ascertaining  the  rates  to  sev- 
enty-one stations  at  different  distances  from  Boston,  and  arrang- 
ing them  in  four  different  classes." 

Mr.  Hubbard  groups  his  American  distances  "into  classes  of 
500,  1,000,  1,500,  and  2,000  miles;  while  his  English  classes 
embrace  those  of  100  and  under,  200  and  under ;  over  200, 
and  to  Ireland. 

The  average  rates  he  gives  for  America  for 

Class  A,  500  miles  and  under,  .         .         .     $0.41 

"     E,  over    500,  and  under  1,000,       .         .         .  1.43 

«     C,     "   1,000,    «       "      1,500,  .         .         .       2.46 

"     D,    "   1,500,    "       "      2,000,       .         .         .          3.36 

The  English  rate  for 

Class  A,  less  than  100  miles,  one  shilling,  equal  to  $0.33  U.  S.  currency. 
"     B,  between  100  and  200  miles,  one 

shilling  and  sixpence,  "         0.50  " 

"     C,  over  200  miles,  two  shillings,  "         0.66  « 

"     D,  to  Ireland,  three  to  four     "  "         1.00  to  1.33    " 

Mr.  Hubbard  says  :  — 

"  As  rates  are  higher  in  America,  a  greater  proportion  of  mes- 
sages are  sent  to  stations  in  class  A  than  in  England,  and  a*  smaller 
proportion  to  class  D.  The  average  receipt  per  message,  at  these 
rates,  is  f  1.00.  The  gross  receipts  of  the  Western  Union  Com- 
pany, for  the  year  ending  the  30th  of  June,  1868,  were  $6,952,273.* 
This  sum,  divided  by  the  average  receipts,  gives  the  whole  num- 
ber of  messages  transmitted,  viz.  6,952,000. 

"It  maybe  objected  that  those  estimates  are  incorrect,  and  there- 
fore the  deductions  are  unreliable.  If  the  Western  Union  Tele- 
graph Company  furnish  a  statement  of  messages  annually  trans- 
mitted, the  required  corrections  will  be  made.  If  it  is  not  given, 
it  will  be  because  the  estimates  of  the  average  rates  are  too  low, 
and  the  deductions  too  favorable  to  that  company."  f 

As  the  average  of  these  English  rates  is  a  little  over  75  cents, 

*  This  amount  embraces  the  total  revenue  of  the  Western  Union  Telegraph  Com- 
pany for  that  year,  and  includes  the  receipts  for  telegrams,  press  reports,  and  from  all 
other  sources. 

t  The  statement  on  page  7,  of  the  number  of  messages  annually  transmitted  by 
this  company,  shows  that  Mr.  Hubbard's  estimate  gives  less  than  70  pep  cent  of  the 
number  actually  sent  over  the  wires.  The  average  rate  per  message  in  the  United 
States  is  fifty -seven  cents. 


60 

while  the  greatest  distance  for  the  highest  English  class  is  less 
than  for  the  shortest  American  class,  which  he  averages  at  41  cents, 
we  do  not  see  how  he  can  assert  that  the  American  rates  are 
higher  than  the  English ! 

In  answer  to  the  charge  of  want  of  uniformity  in  the  tariffs,  we 
would  call  attention  to  the  fact,  that  the  lines  under  our  control 
were  constructed  by  a  great  number  of  separate  organizations, 
having  tariffs  upon  all  bases,  which  had  to  be  added  together  at 
all  the  termini  of  two  or  more  lines,  so  that  a  message  going  a  few 
hundred  miles  would  require  the  payment  sometimes  of  two  or 
three  rates.  For  instance,  a  few  years  since  there  were  five  tele- 
graph companies  owning  the  lines  connecting  Portland,  Maine, 
with  Cleveland,  Ohio,  and  the  tariff  between  these  two  places  was 
ascertained  by  the  addition  of  the  local  rates  from  Portland  to 
Boston,  Boston  to  Springfield,  Springfield  to  Albany,  Albany  to 
Buffalo,  and  from  Buffalo  to  Cleveland.  The  same  system  pre- 
vailed throughout  the  United  States,  until  after  the  consolidation 
of  the  lines  made  it  possible  ta  transmit  messages  between  places 
thousands  of  miles  apart  without  the  necessity  of  booking  or 
rechecking  at  intermediate  points.  This  result  necessitated  a 
remodelling  of  the  tariffs,  and  the  work  has  been  going  on  uninter- 
ruptedly ever  since  ;  but  when  it  is  considered  that  a  complete 
revision  of  the  system  required  a  separate  tariff-sheet  to  be  made 
out  for  over  three  thousand  offices,  changing  ^and  equalizing  the 
rates  to  more  than  three  thousand  other  offices,  the  immense  labor 
and  responsibility  incurred  in  the  undertaking  may  be  imagined. 
It  was  impossible  to  effect  this  revision  at  once  with  any  number 
of  clerks,  and  for  obvious  reasons  only  a  limited  number  could  be 
employed  upon  it,  as  they  can  only  act  under  the  instruction  of 
the  executive  officers,  who  are  charged  with  all  the  other  duties  of 
an  extensive  organization. 

Various  plans  have  been  suggested  for  simplifying  and  equaliz- 
ing the  tariffs,  but  difficulties  of  a  practical  nature  present  them- 
selves in  all  of  them.  The  existence  of  rival  lines,  built  by  spec- 
ulators whose  profit  is  in  the  construction  of  them,  and  which 
essay  to  do  business  at  rates  less  than  the  cost  of  the  service, 
necessitates  the  reduction  of  our  rates  along  certain  routes  dispro- 
portionately, and  prevents  the  adoption  of  a  general  rate  strictly 


61 

proportioned  to  distance.  In  the  course  of  the  coming  year,  how- 
ever, it  is  expected  that  the  work  of  revising  our  whole  tariff  system 
will  be  accomplished,  to  the  satisfaction  of  all. 


ASSERTION  THAT  COMMERCIAL  MESSAGES  ARE  TRANSMITTED 

AT  A  LOSS. 

Mr.  Hubbard's  assertion  that  the  lowest  rate  between  any  large 
cities  in  America  is  25  cents  is  incorrect.  The  tariff  between 
Washington  and  Baltimore  is  10  cents  ;  between  New  York  and 
Providence,  New  Haven,  Hartford,  &c.,  20  cents. 

If  it  is  true,  as  he  states,  that  "  at  these  rates,  under  the  present 
system,  commercial  messages  are  probably  transmitted  at  a  loss," 
it  may  be  a  matter  of  regret  to  the  stockholders  of  the  telegraph 
companies,  but  affords  no  just  ground  for  governmental  inter- 
ference. Besides,  how  will  his  proposed  corporation  be  able  to 
make  money  by  doing  the  business  at  a  still  lower  rate  ? 

Mr.  Hubbard  says  :  — 

"  The  history  of  the  telegraph  will  explain  the  causes  of  these  dif- 
ferent rates.  Great  competition,  in  1852,  caused  a  large  reduction 
in  the  rates.  Soon  after  the  validity  of  Mr.  Morse's  patent  was 
confirmed  by  the  courts  many  of  the  competing  companies  were 
enjoined  and  compelled  to  wind  up  or  sell  out,  and  some  failed. 
In  the  Eastern  and  Southern  States  the  American  Telegraph 
Company,  in  which  Mr.  Morse  and  his  friends  were  largely  inter- 
ested, bought  out  most  of  the  old  companies,  and  continued  to 
occupy  their  territory  for  many  years  without  serious  opposi- 
tion. 

u  The  various  companies  in  the  West,  South,  and  Northwest 
(forming  groups  of  feeble  organization)  were  gradually  merged 
into  one  corporation,  under  the  name  of  the  Western  Union  Tele- 
graph Company.  In  1864,  the  United  States  Telegraph  Company 
was  organized  to  oppose  this  monopoly,  and  entered  into  a  vigor- 
ous competition  with  the  Western  Union ;  prices  were  reduced  in 
consequence,  and  the  business  increased  with  great  rapidity.  In 
1866  the  American  Telegraph  Company,  the  United  States  Tele- 
graph Company,  and  the  Western  Union  were  united  under  the 
corporate  name  of  the  last  corporation  ;  the  prices  were  again 
raised,  and  this  first  caused  a  less  ratio  of  increase,  and  finally  an 
actual  decrease  iii  the  telegraphic  business  of  the  country." 


62 

Mr.  Hubbard's  pamphlet  contains  a  statement  of  the  rates  be- 
tween New  York  and  Boston  in  former  years  which  is  inaccurate. 
The  following  is  a  correct  table  of  the  rates  between  those  cities 
for  the  years  1849-52. 

In  1849  the  rate  was  30  cents. 

"  1850   "      "      "     20-    « 

"  1851   "      "      "     20     " 

"  1852   "     "      "     10    " 

CORRECTION  OF  ERRONEOUS   STATEMENTS.] 

The  statement  that  "  soon  after  the  validity  of  the  Morse  patent 
was  confirmed  by  the  courts  in  1852  many  of  the  competing 
companies  were  enjoined  and  compelled  to  wind  up  or  sell  out " 
is  incorrect,  as  is  also  the  assertion  that  "  the  American  Telegraph 
Company  bought  out  most  of  the  old  companies,  and  continued  to 
occupy  their  territory  for  many  years  without  serious  opposition." 

The  validity  of  the  Morse  patent  was  never  disputed.  In  1849 
the  Morse  patentees  commenced  suits  against  the  New  York  and 
New  England  [Bairi]  Telegraph  Company,  and  the  New  York' 
and  Boston  [House  printing]  Telegraph  Company,  for  an  infringe- 
ment of  the  Morse  patent.  The  case  against  the  company  using 
the  Bain  patent  never  came  to  trial,  while  the  other  was  decided 
in  favor  of  the  defendant,  by  Judge  Woodbury  of  the  United 
States  Supreme  Court,  1850.* 

The  consolidations  between  competing  lines,  in  1852  and  1853, 
was  caused  by  the  inability  of  the  companies  under  separate  or- 
ganizations to  meet  their  working  expenses.  They  were  generally 
confined,  however,  to  the  union  of  the  Morse  and  Bain  lines,  and 
there  still  remained  two  competing  lines  upon  all  the  principal 
routes.  There  has  never  been  but  a  siftgle  year,  since  1849,  when 
there  have  not  been  at  least  two  competing  lines  between  Boston 
and  Washington. 

The  American  Telegraph  Company  was  not  organized  until 
1855,  and  it  was  not  consolidated  with  any  opposition  line  until 
1860.  The  next  year  after  the  consolidation  the  Independent 

*  For  an  abstract  of  this  decision  see  "  Prescott's  History,  Theory,  and  Practice  of 
the  Electric  Telegraph."    Boston  :  Fields,  Osgood,  &  Co. 


63 

Company  built  a  competing  line  between  New  York  and  Portland, 
Maine. 

The  assertion  that  "  the  United  States  Telegraph  Company  was 
organized  to  oppose  this  monopoly,  and  entered  into  a  vigorous 
competition  with  the  Western  Union,  and  that  prices  were  re- 
duced in  consequence,"  is  also  incorrect.  The  United  States 
Telegraph  Company  never  reduced  the  rates  at  any  point.  On 
the  contrary,  it  was  not  until  after  the  United  States'  lines  were 
put  in  operation  that  the  rates  were  advanced.  This  was  rendered 
necessary  by  the  great  depreciation  of  our  currency,  and  con- 
sequent advance  in  the  cost  of  labor  and  materials  for  working  the 
lines,  and  was  done  by  agreement  of  all  the  companies. 

TARIFFS  NOT  INCREASED  BY  CONSOLIDATION  OF  THE  LINES. 

The  statement  that,  after  the  consolidation  of  the  American, 
United  States,  and  Western  Union  Telegraph  Companies,  in  1866, 
"  the  prices  were  again  raised,  and  this  first  caused  a  less  ratio  of 
increase,  and  finally  an  actual  decrease  in  the  telegraphic  business 
of  the  country,"  is  without  the  least  foundation  in  fact.  In  no  in- 
stance has  the  tariff  been  increased  since  the  consolidation.  On 
the  contrary,  there  has  been  a  steady  decrease,  the  rates  to  more 
than  one  thousand  stations  having  been  lowered  since  the  con- 
solidation ;  and  this  course  is  still  being  pursued  as  rapidly  as  a 
just  regard  to  the  rights  of  the  stockholders  and  the  extremely 
complicated  nature  of  adjustment  to  be  made  will  allow. 

The  impression  which  Mr.  Hubbard  attempts  to  give,  that  the 
consolidation  of  the  companies  forming  the  Western  Union  Tele- 
graph Company,  included  all  the  lines,  and  gave  this  company  a 
monopoly  of  the  business,  is  also  incorrect.  The  Franklin  Com- 
pany, between  Boston  and  New  York,  the  Insulated  Company, 
between  Boston  and  Washington,  the  Bankers  and  Brokers',  be- 
tween New  York  and  Washington,  and  others,  were  then  in 
active  operation,  and  are  still. 

Mr.  Hubbard  says  :  — 

"  In  other  countries,  the  rates  are  reduced  with  the  growth  of 
business,  and  are  never  raised.  In  this  country,  they  are  reduced 
by  competition,  followed  by  consolidation  of  the  competing  com- 


64 

panies,  and  subsequent  increase  of  rates,  without  regard  to  the 
growth  of  the  business." 

The  rates  are  unquestionably  often  reduced  by  competition, 
sometimes  below  the  cost  of  doing  the  business,  and  this  will 
always  be  the  case  as  long  as  men  will  listen  to  the  plausible 
schemes  of  speculative  enthusiasts,  and  invest  their  money  in  new 
lines  in  the  hope  of  realizing  profits  which  are  never  earned.  The 
assertion,  however,  that  consolidation  is  followed  by  an  increase  of 
rates,  without  regard  to  the  growth  of  the  business,  is  not  war- 
ranted by  the  facts. 


ERRONEOUS  ASSERTION  THAT  A  LARGE  PROPORTION   OF   THE 
OFFICES  ARE  AT  RAILROAD  STATIONS. 

We  quote  from  Mr.  Hubbard  again  :  — 

"  The  telegraph  in  this  country  is  very  generally  connected 
with  the  railroad  system,  'and  a  large  proportion  of  the  offices  are 
at  railroad  stations.*  These  are  seldom  in  the  centre  of  the 
towns,  and  are  not  resorted  to  as  generally  as  the  post-office. 
In  the  large  cities,  the  principal  offices  are  near  the  business 
centres,  with  a  number  of  secondary  offices,  generally  at  hotels 
and  railroad  stations.  The  rent  of  the  main  offices  is  very  large, 
and  the  expenses  for  operators,  clerks,  and  managers  are  also 
necessnrily  much  more  than  when  the  telegraph  is  connected 
with  the  post." 

It  is  true  that  many  telegraph  offices  are  connected  with  the 
railroad  system  in  this  country,  as  well  as  abroad.  Indeed,  no  rail- 
road would  be  considered  complete  without  such  a  connection,  but 
it  is  not  true  that  a  large  proportion  of  the  offices  are  at  the  rail- 
road stations. 

We  have  shown  on  page  8  that  the  telegraph  system  of  Europe 
is  not  specially  connected  with  the  Past-Office  Department.  In 
some  countries  the  telegraph,  post-office,  and  railway  systems  are 
under  one  department,  but  there  is  no  particular  connection  be- 
tween them.  The  post-offices  are  merely  offices  of  deposit  for 
telegrams,  and  not  for  transmission.  But  supposing  they  were 
united,  why  should  the  expenses  of  operators,  clerks,  and  managers 

*  By  a  singular  coincidence,  Mr.  Scudamore  makes  the  same  complaint  against  the 
English  companies,  and  in  nearly  the  same  words.  See  Scudamore's  Letter  to  the 
Postmaster-General,  London,  1868. 


65 

be  necessarily  much  less  than  when  the  telegraph  is  worked  sepa- 
rately? We  presume  he  does  not  propose  to  dispense  with  the 
operators,  and  put  the  telegrams  in  the  mail-bag  ;  or  does  he  pro- 
pose that  when  the  government  gets  control  of  the  telegraph  that 
the  salaries  will  be  reduced  ?  If  this  is  his  idea,  we  think  he  is 
reckoning  on  a  false  hope,  for  if  there  was  an  attempt  of  this 
nature,  the  operators  would  seek  some  other  employment. 

AMERICAN  AND  EUROPEAN  TELEGRAPH  TARIFFS  COMPARED. 

Mr.   Hubbard  says  :  — 

"  The  lowest  American  rates  are  higher  than  the  average  for- 
eign rates,  and  the  average  rates  several  times  higher  than  the 
foreign.  These  high  rates  retard  the  development  of  the  system, 
which  was  more  rapid  in  its  early  growth  in  this  than  in  any  other 
country.  What  are  the  reasons  assigned  for  these  high  rates  ? 
Are  they  well  founded,  and  if  not,  how  can  they  be  obviated  ?  " 

These  assertions  are  entirely  erroneous,  and  the  facts  quite  the 
reverse.  The  highest  American  rates  are  lower  than  the  highest 
foreign  rates  ;  the  average  American  rates  are  lower  than  the  aver- 
age foreign  rates  ;  and  the  lowest  American  rates  are  lower  than 
the  lowest  foreign  rates.  The  lowest  rate  given  in  Europe  is  half 
a  franc,  about  equal  to  144-  cents  in  currency,  while  our  rate  be- 
tween Baltimore  and  Washington  is  only  10  cents.  In  Paris  the 
tariff  on  city  messages  is  half  a  franc  (14|  cents),  and  in  London, 
for  city  messages,  6<i.  sterling,  equal  to  18  cents  in  our  currency ; 
while  the  rates  for  New  York,  from  the  Battery  to  Harlem  River, 
are  only  10  cents. 

In  order  that  a  fair  comparison  may  be  made  between  the 
American  and  European  systems  of  telegraphy,  so  far  as  the  rate 
of  charges  is  concerned,  we  present  a  list  of  sixty  of  the  principal 
stations  in  Europe,  and  the  same  number  in  the  United  States, 
with  the  tariffs  and  distances  in  air  lines  from  London  and  New 
York  respectively,  together  with  the  rules  and  regulations  of  each 
system. 


66 


RULES    OF    THE    EUROPEAN 
TELEGRAPHS. 

The  minimum  charge  is  for  a  message 
of  twenty  words,  including  the  address 
and  signature,  and  half  price  is  charged 
for  each  ten  or  fraction  of  ten  words  above 
twenty. 

"Words  of  seven  or  less  syllables  count 
as  one  word.  In  words  containing  more 
than  seven,  the  overplus  counts  as  one 
word ;  each  word  underlined  counts  as 
three  words. 

Messages  containing  the  same  subject- 
matter  addressed  to  different  stations  are 
charged  as  separate  messages. 

Secret  or  cipher  messages  can  be  sent 
by  government  only. 

Replies  at  full  rates  can  be  prepaid ;  but 
should  the  reply  contain  more  than  the 
number  of  words  specified  and  .paid  for, 
the  sender  of  the  reply  must  pay  for  the 
excess  as  a  fresh  message. 

Messages  can  be  repeated  by  payment 
of  double  charge  at  the  time  they  are  sent, 
the  words  "Repetition  paid"  being  in- 
serted after  receiver's  address,  and  charged 
for. 

All  complaints  respecting  irregularity 
in  the  transmission  or  delivery  of  mes- 
sages must  be  made  by  THE  SENDER,  and 
in  cases  of  delay  or  error  the  complaint 
must  invariably  be  accompanied  by  the 
RECEIVER'S  COPY  of  the  message.  Com- 
plaints from  the  receivers  of  messages  will 
not  be  entertained. 


RULES  OF  THE  WESTERN  UNION 
TELEGRAPH  COMPANY. 

The  minimum  tariff  is  for  a  message  of 
ten  words.  No  charge  is  made  for  address, 
signature,  or  date.  After  the  first  ten  words 
the  rate  is  so  much  per  word,  the  amount 
being  proportional  to  the  rate  for  the  first 
ten. 

All  words  are  counted  as  one  which 
are  found  so  written  in  the  dictionaries. 
No  extra  charge  is  made  for  messages 
written  in  cipher,  and  no  restrictions  are 
placed  upon  their  transmission. 

Replies  can  be  prepaid  if  desired,  and 
no  charge  is  made  for  inserting  this  in- 
formation in  the  sender's  message. 

Messages  can  be  repeated  by  the  pay- 
ment of  one  half  the  regular  charge  in 
addition,  and  the  company  agrees  to  be 
responsible  for  any  mistakes  which  may 
occur  in  repeated  messages,  to  the  amount 
of  fifty  times  the  sum  received  for  sending 
the  same. 

Correctness  in  the  transmission  of  mes- 
sages to  any  point  on  the  lines  of  this 
company  can  be  INSURED  by  contract  in 
writing,  stating  agreed  amount  of  risk, 
and  payment  of  premium  thereon  at  the 
following  rates,  in  addition  to  the  usual 
charge  for  repeated  messages,  viz. :  one 
per  cent  for  any  distance  not  exceeding 
one  thousand  miles,  and  two  per  cent  for 
any  greater  distance.  No  employee  of 
the  company  is  authorized  to  vary  the 
foregoing. 


Statement  showing  the  Minimum  Rate  for  Telegrams  from  London  to 
Principal  Cities  in  Europe,  and  from  New  York  to  Principal  Cities 
in  America. 


From  London 

Distance 
in  Eng. 
Miles. 

Tariff. 

From  New  York 

Distance 
in  Eng. 
Miles. 

Tariff. 

To  Cambridge 
Dover 
Birmingham 
Worcester 
Havre 
Liverpool 
Caen 

40 
50 
100 
100 
125 
180 
160 

£ 

s. 

2 

1 
2 
3 
1 
5 

d.  U.  S.  Cur. 
6  =$0.52 

o!=  0.70 

0  =  0.35 
0=  0.70 
6'=  1.22 
0=  0.35 
0'=   1.75 

To  New  Haven,  Conn. 
Hartford,  Conn. 
Providence,  R.  I.  " 
Springfield,  Mass. 
Worcester,      " 
Boston, 
Portsmouth,  N.  H. 

70 
100 
150 
125 
155 
190 
200 

$  cts. 
0.20 
0.20 
0.20 
0.30 
0.30 
0.30 
0.45 

67 


j  Distance 
From  London           in  Eng.  ! 
Miles. 

Tariff. 

Distance 
From  New  York               ;in  Eng. 
Miles. 

Tariff. 

£     ».     d.,  U.S.  Cur. 

$  CtS. 

To  Plymouth 

190 

2    C  =  O.S7 

To  Washington,  D.  C. 

190 

0.40 

Paris 

200 

50:=   1.75 

Augusta,  Me. 

280 

0.65 

Amsterdam 

200 

6 

6  =  2.27 

Oswego,  N.  Y. 

250 

0.40 

Rheims 

250 

5 

0=   1.75 

Portland,  Me. 

250 

0.65 

Aix-la-Chapelle 

265 

5 

0 

=  1.75 

Bath, 

275 

0.65 

Wakefield 

300 

5 

0 

=    1.75 

Rochester,  N.  Y. 

280 

0.50 

Dublin 

290 

5 

6 

=   1.75 

Pittsburg,  Pa. 

300 

0.45 

Edinburgh 

320 

4 

0  =    1  .40 

Camden,  Me. 

330 

0.65 

Rochelle 

350 

7 

3  =  2.53 

Belfast,      " 

350 

0.65 

Frankfort 

380 

7 

6 

=  2.62 

Buffalo,  N.  Y. 

330 

0.50 

Hamburg 

380 

8 

0 

=  2.80 

Erie,  Pa. 

360 

1.00 

Strasburg 

385 

7 

3 

=  2.53 

Bangor,  Me. 

340 

0.65 

Hanover 

400 

8 

0 

=  2.80 

Cleveland,  Ohio 

425 

1.00 

Stuttgart 

420 

7 

/? 

=   2.62 

Toledo, 

470 

1.00 

Berne 

450 

7 

3 

=  2.53 

Columbus,     " 

475 

0.95 

Bordeaux 

455 

7 

3 

=  2.53 

Sandusky,     " 

480 

1.40 

Munich 

540 

S 

5 

=  2.67 

Cincinnati,     " 

550 

1.00 

Turin 

550 

7 

3 

=  3.53 

Lexington,  Ky. 

575 

.00 

Copenhagen 

552 

8 

0 

=  2.80 

Davton,  Ohio, 

552 

.00 

Berlin 

560 

10 

0 

=  3.50 

Charleston,  S.  C. 

590 

2.00 

Milan 

575 

8 

6 

=   2.67 

Fort  Wayne,  Ind.                580 

.70 

Marseilles 

576 

8 

6 

=  2.67 

Lansing,  Mich.                     590 

.85 

Prague 

600 

9 

9 

=  3.41 

Louisville,  Ky. 

625 

.00 

Modena 

650 

9 

6 

=  3.32 

Indianapolis,  Ind. 

650 

1.90 

Saragossa 

652 

9 

6 

=  3.32 

New  Albany,    " 

660 

.75 

Christiania 

700 

17 

6 

=  5.95 

La  Fayette,  Ind. 

700 

.95 

Trieste 

720 

11 

=  3.85 

Chicago,  111. 

730 

.75 

Vienna 

780 

11 

=  3.85 

Racine,  Wis. 

750 

.90 

Madrid 

750 

10 

6 

=  3.67 

Milwaukee,  Wis. 

770 

.90 

Ancona 

800 

11 

=  3.85 

Peru,  111. 

800 

225 

Rome 

850 

18 

=  420 

Madison,  Wis. 

850 

2.40 

Stockholm 

860 

16 

3 

=  5.69 

Montgomery,  Ala. 

860     3.05 

Warsaw 

875 

13 

3 

=  4.64 

St.  Louis,  Mo. 

880     2.00 

Pesth 

880 

12 

3 

=  4.29 

Galena,  111. 

880 

2.35 

Cagliari 

925 

14 

=  4.90 

Rock  Island,  111. 

900 

2.35 

Naples 

950 

11 

=  3.85 

Prairie  du  Chien,  Wis. 

950 

2.65 

Lishon 

955 

14 

=  4.90 

Quincv,  111. 

950 

2.60 

Seville 

980 

13 

=  4.55 

Jefferson  City,  Mo. 

975 

2.7'0 

Cadiz 

1,000 

13 

=  4.55 

Mobile,  Ala. 

,000 

3.00 

Belgrade 

1,005 

13 

6 

=  4.72 

Little  Rock,  Ark. 

,050 

4.00 

Palermo 

1,080 

12 

=  4.20 

Des  Moines,  Iowa. 

,080 

2.70 

St   Petersburg 

1,160 

18 

6 

=  6.47 

New  Orleans,  La. 

,100 

3.25 

Novgorod 

1,275 

18    6 

=  6.47 

Houston,           " 

,330 

5-00 

Smolensk 

1,280 

181  6 

=  6.47 

Galveston,  Texas 

,340 

3-95 

Malta 

1,250 

16    9 

=  5.87 

Grand  Island,  Nebraska 

,350 

4.60 

Odessa 

1,360 

18    6 

=  6.47 

Fort  Kearney,       " 

,380 

525 

Athens 

,450 

1  12 

=11.36 

Austin,  Texas 

,460 

5.50 

Constantinople 

,480 

19|  6 

=   7.00 

San  Antonio,  Texas 

,550 

5.50 

Smyrna 

,540 

1 

6 

6 

=  9.43 

Fort  Laramie,  Nebraska 

,600 

6.40 

Nishni  Novgorod 

,700 

1 

2 

=  7.86 

Denver,  Colorado 

,700 

760 

Moscow 

,485 

19 

=  665 

Salt  Lake  City,  Utah 

2,100 

5.95 

Taganrog 

,490 

1 

6 

=   9/26 

Sacramento,  California 

2,500 

6.75 

Sjunien 

,500 

1 

8 

=  9.96 

Stockton,               " 

2,500 

6.75 

Alexandria     " 

.867 

•2 

6 

C 

=  16.69 

San  Francisco,      " 

2,600 

6.75 

68 


MORE  ERRONEOUS  STATEMENTS. 

Mr.  Hubbard's  assertion  that,  "  where  a  message  is  repeated,  the 
expense  is  increased  about  seventy-five  per  cent,  but  on  well-con- 
structed lines,  in  ordinary  weather,  messages  between  any  two  sta- 
tions east  of  a  line  from  St.  Paul  to  New  Orleans  require  but  one 
repetition,"  hardly  needs  refutation.  East  of  the  line  named  there 
are  more  than  four  thousand  telegraph  offices,  and  at  least  1,300 
separate  and  distinct  circuits.  How,  then,  can  separate  wires  be 
maintained  between  every  two  stations  over  this  vast  territory  ? 
Even  confining  the  statement  to  one  office  at  the  East,  —  say  Bos- 
ton, for  example,  —  how  is  it  possible  to  maintain  separate  circuits 
that  will  enable  that  office  to  work  direct  with  each  one  of  four 
thousand  offices  ?  It  would  be  more  practicable  to  travel  from 
every  town  in  the  United  States  to  every  other  town,  without 
change  of  cars,  than  it  would  to  establish  direct  telegraphic  con- 
nection between  each. 

The  Western  Union  Telegraph  Company  maintains  independent 
circuits,  and  works  direct  between  New  York  and  Philadelphia, 
Washington,  Boston,  Buffalo,  Montreal,  Chicago,  Cincinnati,  New 
Orleans,  Portland,  Plaister  Cove,  and  many  other  points  ;  but  to 
work  with  every  office  in  the  United  States  without  repetition 
would  require  more  wires  upon  each  pole  than  the  mythical  Bria- 
reus  had  hands. 

SINGULAR  NOTIONS   OF  PRACTICAL  TELEGRAPHY. 

It  seems  scarcely  worth  while  to  follow  Mr.  Hubbard  in  his 
statements  regarding  the  capital  of  the  Western  Union  Telegraph 
Company,  and  the  cost  of  its  lines.  We  have  given  a  statement 
on  pages  37  to  40  of  the  organization  of  this  company,  the  amount 
of  its  capital,  length  of  lines,  and  other  matters  of  interest. 

Mr.  Hubbard's  statement  that  the  directors  of  the  Western 
Union  Telegraph  Company  have  steadfastly  refused  to  reduce  rates 
until  forced  by  competition,  and  then  consolidated  with  the  com- 
peting company,  and  again  raised  the  rates,  is  without  the  slight- 
est foundation  in  fact.  We  have  previously  stated  that  no  in- 
crease in  the  rates  has  been  made  since  the  consolidation  with  the 
United  States  and  American  companies,  but,  on  the  contrary,  they 


69 

have  been  reduced  to  more  than  one  thousand  stations,  while  the 
opposition  have  less  than  three  hundred  offices  all  told. 

ABSURD  THEORIES  REGARDING  THE  WORKING  CAPACITY  OF 
TELEGRAPH  LINES. 

Mr.  Hubbard  says  :  — 

"  The  capacities  of  the  line  of  telegraph  are  very  great. 
2,000  words  an  hour  are  easily  transmitted  by  a  good  operator 
over  a  single  wire.  At  this  rate  there  could  be  sent  over  fifty- 
one  of  the  eighty  or  ninety  wires  leading  from  the  New  York 
office  of  the  Western  Union  Telegraph  Company  2,448,000  words, 
or  97,920  messages  of  twenty-five  words  each,  a  day.  This  amount 
cannot  be  obtained.  Forty  messages  an  hour  are  easily  transmitted 
by  a  good  operator  over  a  through  line,  and  this  number  could  be 
sent  every  hour  by  relays  of  operators.  This  estimate  gives 
1,224,000  words,  or  48,960  messages.  On  through  and  local  lines 
a  deduction  of  one  half  for  twelve  hours  of  the  day,  during  which 
the  local  lines  are  open,  must  be  made,  —  918,000  words,  or 
36,720  messages,  on  through  and  local  lines.  The  average  num- 
ber actually  transmitted  on  these  fifty-one  wires  is  184,378  words, 
or  7,375  messages.  733,622  more  words,  or  29,340  more  mes- 
sages might  daily  be  transmitted  over  these  lines.  If  the  present 
business  could  be  distributed  over  all  the  hours  of  the  day,  or  if 
there  were  sufficient  business  for  all  the  wires  the  whole  day,  the 
rates  could  be  largely  reduced. 

"  Nearly  eighteen  hours  of  each  day  the  wires  are  idle,  yet  a 
considerable  portion  of  the  expenses  of  the  line  are  no  greater  than 
they  would  be  if  messages  were  transmitted  the  whole  time.  In- 
terest, depreciation,  and  repairs,  office  rent,  salaries,  and  general 
management  are  the  same,  whether  much  or  little  business  is  trans- 
acted. These  items  constitute  about  one  third  of  all  the  expenses 
on  the  Western  Union  line.  The  other  expenses  will  not  be  in- 
creased in  proportion  to  the  increase  of  the  time." 

In  reply  to  the  above,  we  assert  that  2,000  words  an  hour  are 
not  easily  transmitted  by  a  good  operator  over  a  single  wire. 
There  are  operators  who  can  send  at  this  rate  for  a  short  time,  but 
they  are  very  few  in  number,  and  none  of  them  could  maintain 
this  rate  of  speed  for  any  length  of  time.  It  must  be  recollected 
that  a  message  must  be  copied  with  a  pen  as  rapidly  as  it  is 
sent.  Now,  we  doubt  if  Mr.  Hubbard  even  can  write  2,000 
words  legibly  within  an  hour,  with  pen  and  ink.  It  is  well  known 
that  the  celebrated  horse  Dexter  has  trotted  a  mile  in  the  unpre- 


70 

cedented  time  of  2.17,  but  would  it  not  be  absurd  to  state,  on 
that  account,  that  every  good  horse  can  easily  trot  twenty-six  miles 
an  hour  ?  Why,  Dexter  himself  cannot  keep  up  this  rate  of  speed 
for  even  a  quarter  of  an  hour.  Because  a  celebrated  pedestrian 
walked  a  hundred  miles  in  twenty-four  hours,  would  it  be  just  to 
say  that  every  good  walker  can  easily  walk  36,500  miles  per 
annum  ?  A  man  in  California  rode  three  hundred  miles  in 
twenty-four  hours ;  would  it  be  honest,  therefore,  to  say  that  every 
good  horseman  can  easily  ride  9,000  miles  a  month  ?  The 
maximum  speed  of  the  best  operators  is  1,500  words  per  hour,  but 
the  average  speed  of  the  best  is  very  much  below  this. 

The  amount  of  business  done  upon  a  wire  in  a  given  time  is 
vastly  greater  in  this  country  than  in  any  other.  In  Europe  there 
are  355,218  miles  of  wire,  while  in  the  United  States  there  are 
less  than  one  third  as  many,  and  yet  the  wires  in  this  country 
transmit  more  telegraphic  matter  per  annum  than  all  the  lines  in 
Europe.  This  almost  incredible  fact  is  explained  by  the  superior 
character  and  ability  of  our  operating  staff.  In  Europe  they  still 
use  recording  instruments,  and  slowly  and  laboriously  pick  out 
their  messages  upon  strips  of  paper.  Here,  on  the  contrary,  every 
operator  —  except  in  the  small  villages  —  reads  by  sound,  and 
does  three  times  as  much  work  upon  a  wire  as  the  poorly  paid  and 
inefficient  European  operator.  Now,  this  being  the  case,  — •  and  the 
statistics  prove  it,  —  it  can  hardly  be  pretended  that  our  company 
gets  much  less  out  of  its  wires  than  they  can  reasonably  perform, 
and  yet  Mr.  Hubbard  says  we  "  could  easily  send  on  fifty-one 
wires  97,920  messages  per  day,  while  in  reality  we  only  send 
7,375."  Here  is  a  difference  between  theory  and  practice  that 
beats  even  Dexter' s  2.17  as  the  rate  of  speed  which  every 
horse  in  America  can  average. 

IMPOSSIBILITY  OF  UTILIZING  THE  TELEGRAPH  LINES  BY 
NIGHT  AS  WELL  AS  DAY. 

Mr.  Hubbard  says,  "  If  the  present  business  could  be  dis- 
tributed over  all  the  hours  of  the  day,  or  if  there  were  sufficient 
business  for  all  the  wires  the  whole  day,  the  rates  could  be  largely 
reduced  "  ;  but  neither  of  these  propositions  can  be  realized.  The 
telegraph  is  an  errand-boy  which  every  one  uses  when  the  exi- 


71 

gency  requires  it,  and  which  no  one  will  use  unnecessarily,  even 
though  it  work  for  nothing.  In  order  to  utilize  the  wires  during 
those  portions  of  the  day  and  night  when  they  are  comparatively 
idle,  the  Western  Union  Telegraph  Company  adopted  the  follow- 
ing rates  for  night  messages :  — 

"  This  company  will  transmit  messages  between  the  principal 
cities  on  its  lines  east  of  St.  Louis  and  New  Orleans,  both  in- 
clusive, daring  the  night,  and  deliver  the  same  the  succeeding 
morning,  on  the  following  terms  :  For  a  message  of  20  words  or 
less,  the  usual  tolls  on  a  ten-word  message  will  be  charged.  For  a 
message  of  more  than  20  words,  and  not  exceeding  60  words,  twice 
the  usual  tolls  on  a  ten-word  message  will  be  charged.  For  a 
message  of  more  than  60  words,  and  not  exceeding  120  words, 
three  times  the  usual  tolls  on  a  ten-word  message  will  be  charged. 
For  each  additional  100  words,  or  part  thereof,  in  excess  of  120 
words,  the  usual  tolls  on  a  ten-word  message  will  be  charged  in 
addition.  Such  messages  will  be  known  as  NIGHT  MESSAGES. 
They  will  be  received  for  transmission  at  any  time  during  the  day 
or  evening,  and  will  be  sent  during  the  succeeding  night.  No 
additional  charge  will  be  made  for  cipher  messages." 

The  very  moderate  success  of  our  night-message  experiment, 
notwithstanding  the  large  inducements  offered,  proves  that  the  use 
of  the  telegraph  is  required  not  merely  for  communication,  but  for 
emergency  and  despatch.  It  is  also  a  fact  worthy  of  notice,  that 
very  little  of  this  business  is  done  between  Boston,  New  York, 
Philadelphia,  Baltimore,  and  Washington,  notwithstanding  the 
low  rates,  whereby  over  a  hundred  words  can  be  transmitted  for  a 
dollar.  It  is  done  mainly  between  remote  places  like  Chicago, 
Milwaukee,  St.  Louis,  Cincinnati,  Memphis,  and  New  Orleans, 
communication  between  which  by  mail  requires  from  two  to  four 
days. 

In  support  of  this  theory  we  submit  a  statement  of  the  night- 
message  business  between  New  York  City  and  all  points  on  our 
lines  for  the  months  of  March,  July,  and  October.  These  months 
represent  fairly  the  varying  phases  of  our  business  in  respect  to 
trade  in  different  sections  of  the  country  at  different  seasons  of  the 
year. 

The  total  number  of  night  messages  sent  and  received  between 


72 

New  York  City  and  all  places  on  our  lines  for  the  three  months 

named  was  6,273,  divided  as  follows  :  — 

Between  New  York  and  Charleston,  S.  C.      .         .         .276 
«  «  «    Chicago,  111.          ...          904 

"  "  "    Cincinnati,  O.  ...     326 

«  «  "    St.  Louis,  Mo.      ...         433 

"  "  "    Milwaukee,  Wis.       .         .         .176 

«  «  "    Memphis,  Tenn.  .         .         .          316 

"  "  "    Montgomery,  Ala.     .         .         .     176 

«  «    Mobile,  Ala.         .        ,         .          402 

"  "  "    New  Orleans,  La.    .         .         .  1,195 

«  «  "    All  other  places    .       , v        .       2,069 

Total,     ........  6,273 

Our  night-message  experiment  has  proved  that  the  telegraph 
will  not  be  used  at  night,  at  any  tariff,  except  to  a  moderate  ex- 
tent and  between  distant  points. 

The  absurdity  of  placing  the  telegraph  and  postal  systems  in  the 
same  category  has  been  fully  shown  on  pages  43  and  44.  Mr. 
Hubbard  appears  to  have  read  Mr.  Scudamore's  charges  against 
the  English  system,  and  applied  them  literally  to  the  telegraphs  of 
this  country.  Unfortunately,  however,  charges  which  may  be 
true  as  applied  to  the  companies  operating  the  telegraphs  in  the 
United  Kingdom  have  no  pertinency  when  reproduced  as  the  short- 
comings of  the  American  system. 

PROPOSED  INCORPORATION    OF  THE    UNITED    STATES    POSTAL 
TELEGRAPH  COMPANY. 

Mr.  Hubbard  says  :  — 

"  It  is  not  considered  expedient  either  for  the  government  to 
purchase  the  existing  lines,  or  to  construct  and  operate  lines.  How, 
then,  can  the  desired  results  be  best  attained  ?  The  Post-Office 
Department  has  no  facilities  of  its  own  for  the  transmission  of  cor- 
respondence either  by  rail  or  telegraph.  It  contracts  with  the 
railroad  companies  for  carrying  the  mail,  and  it  is  proposed  that  it 
shall  contract  with  a  telegraph  company  for  transmitting  messages. 

"  A  bill  was  introduced  at  the  last  session  of  Congress,  and  re- 
ferred to  the  committee  on  Post  Roads  and  Routes,  to  incorporate 
the  '  United  States  Postal  Telegraph  Company,  and  to  establish  a 
postal  system.' 


73 


"  The  first,  second,  third,  fourth,  and  fifth  sections  of  the  bill  in- 
corporate the  company,  with  power  to  construct  lines  on  all  the 
post  roads  and  routes  of  the  country. 

"  The  sixth  section  authorizes  the  Postmaster-General  to  receive 
bids  from  any  telegraph  company  for  the  transmission  by  telegraph 
of  messages  received  and  delivered  through  the  post-office,  to  all 
cities  and  villages  of  5,000  inhabitants  and  over,  and  to  towns  on 
the  line  of  the  telegraph,  where  stations  may  be  established  by 
order  of  the  Postmaster-General. 

u  The  seventh  section  authorizes  the  Postmaster-General  to  con-* 
tract  for  the  transmission  by  telegraph  of  messages  with  the  com- 
pany that  will  engage  to  transmit  them  for  the  least  sum,  provided 
such  sum  does  not  exceed  twenty-five  cents,  including  five  cents 
postage  for  each  message  of  twenty  words,  including  date,  address, 
and  signature,  for  each  and  every  500  miles  or  fractional  part  thereof 
the  message  may  be  transmitted,  with  five  cents  for  each  added 
five  words.  All  messages  to  be  prepaid  by  stamps,  or  written  on 
stamped  paper. 

"  Messages  to  be  received  at  any  and  all  post-offices,  street-boxes, 
or  other  receptacles  for  letters,  and  to  be  delivered  by  special  car- 
rier without  extra  expense. 

"  Messages  requiring  immediate  despatch  to  have  priority  of 
transmission  on  payment  of  extra  rates. 

"  The  effect  of  the  proposed  reduction  will  be  better  appreciated 
by  comparing  the  present  and  proposed  rates. 


DISTANCES. 

Present 
Rates. 

Proposed 
Rates. 

Reduc- 
tion. 

ProRata 
Reduction. 

To  stations  within.  500  miles      

$0  41 

$0  30 

$0.11 

26  per  ct. 

"         "       between     500  and  1,000  miles  . 
"         "       between  1,000  and  1,500  miles  . 
"         "       between  1,500  and  2,000  miles  . 

1.43 
2.41 
3.41 

0.55 
0.81 
1.47 

0.88 
1.60 
1.94 

62       « 
67       " 

56       " 

Averages    . 

$  1  00  • 

$047  • 

$0  53  • 

53       " 

MESSAGES  DELIVERED  WITHIN  A  MILE  OF  THE  OFFICE  FREE. 

The  rule  was  established  coincident  with  the  introduction  of 
the  telegraph  in  the  United  States  to  deliver  all  messages  in  the 
town  within  a  mile  of  the  receiving  office  free.  Special  and  free 
delivery  should  be  the  rule  as  far  as  practicable.  And  yet  it  is 
impossible,  without  rendering  the  telegraph  of  no  avail  in  im- 
portant emergencies,  to  establish  free  delivery  everywhere.  A 
message  from  an  Eastern  city  to  a  Western  village  announcing 


74 

peril,  disaster,  or  death  is  addressed  to  a  person  two  or  three 
miles  from  the  telegraph  station.  The  charge  for  transmitting 
this  message  is,  say,  fifty  cents.  Two  modes  of  delivery  are 
presented,  —  one  to  drop  it  in  the  post-office,  where  it  may  lie 
until  the  next  day ;  the  other,  to  hire  a  conveyance,  and  send  a 
special  messenger  with  it  to  the  person  addressed.  The  cost  of 
this  special  service  will  vary  from  one  dollar  to  two  dollars. 
Our  practice  is  to  deliver  by  special  messenger,  and  charge  there- 
for the  actual  cost  of  the  service. 

EUROPEAN  CHARGES  FOR  DELIVERING  TELEGRAMS. 

A  similar  custom  prevails  in  Europe,  as  will  appear  from  the 
following  extracts  from  the  rules  and  regulations  applicable  to 
stations  in  the  Austro-Germanic  Telegraph  Union,  which  com- 
prises Austria,  Prussia,  Hanover,  Holland,  Saxony,  Wurtemburg, 
the  German  Duchies,  also  France  and  the  whole  South  of  Europe  : 

CHARGES  FOR  POSTAGE,  FOOT  MESSENGER,  AND  ESTAFETTE. 

The  instruction  for  forwarding  despatches  beyond  Telegraph  lines  must 
be  inserted  in  messages  immediately  after  receiver's  address  and  charged 
for ;  messages  with  no  instructions  will  be  -sent  on  from  Terminal  Tele- 
graph Station  by  post. 

The  sender  is  responsible  for  an  insufficient  address,  and  can  only  rectify 
the  same  by  sending  and  paying  for  a  new  despatch. 
By  Post  (as  Registered  Letter)  to  all  places  in  Europe,       .     .     Os.  lOd. 

"  "  to  all  other  places,    ....     2s.    Od. 

Messages  addressed  to  "  Poste  Restante "  are  subjected  to  the  above 
charges  for  postage. 

By  Express  (Foot  Messenger)  within  seven -English  miles,  2s.  Qd. 

By  Estafette  (Mounted  Messenger)  a  charge  must  be  made  at  the 
rate  of  2s.  Qd.  per  three  English  miles  for  countries  comprised  in  the 
Austro-Germanic  Union,  but  for  other  towns  the  charge  is  Is.  Qd.  per 
English  mile.  If,  however,  the  distance  is  unknown,  a  sufficient  deposit 
must  be  taken. 

All  charges  to  be  prepaid  by  sender. 


75 


TELEGRAMS  TO  BE  PLACED  LN  THE  STREET  BOXES. 

Mr.  Hubbard's  proposition  to  put  telegrams  into  street-boxes  is 
simply  absurd.  Telegrams  are  always  of  sen  important  nature,  and 
need  despatch.  Imagine  a  message  announcing  sickness,  death, 
or  any  other  circumstance,  being  dropped  in  the  street-box,  to  be 
taken  out  when  the  carrier  happens  round  !  As  for  post-offices, 
how  many  are  there  in  any  of  the  large  cities  even  ?  Few  have 
more  than  one,  and  this  is  closed  when  a  mail  arrives,  —  a  cir- 
cumstance that  seems  to  have  rendered  the  closed  condition  the 
normal  one  with  many  post-offices. 

To  give  an  idea  of  the  extent  of  present  facilities  in  the  principal 
cities,  the  following  statement,  showing  the  number  of  telegraph 
offices  now  open,  is  submitted :  — 

New  York, 100  offices. 

Philadelphia, 35       ". 

Baltimore,     .         .         .         .         .         .         .     19       u 

Washington, 16       " 

Boston, 24       " 

Chicago, 22       " 

Cincinnati, 21        " 

PRIVILEGED  PERSONS  TO  HAVE  PRIORITY  Ds  THE  USE  OF   THE 

WIRES. 

Mr.  Hubbard's  plan  of  allowing  "  messages  requiring  immediate 
despatch  to  have  priority  of  transmission  on  payment  of  extra 
rates, ''  would  abolish  the  rule  which  has  always  been  observed 
since  the  establishment  of  the  telegraph  in  this  country,  "  first 
come  first  served,"  and  give  privileged  persons  the  priority  in  the 
use  of  the  wires.  What  an  excellent  opportunity  this  would  afford 
speculative  combinations  (like  that  which  locked  up  twenty  mil- 
lions of  currency  in  Wall  Street  a  short  time  ago)  to  extend  their 
operations  all  over  the 'country,  by  practically  controlling  the  tele- 
graph ? 

This  plan  wrould  not  answer  at  all.  No  system  of  variation  of 
rate  is  feasible,  consistently  with  public  policy,  but  that  which  offers 
a  lower  rate  for  business  which  will  consent  to  be  delayed  until 
another  day. 

In  regard  to  the  establishment  of  a  money-order  system  by  tele- 


T6 

graph,  we  would  say  that  we  have  long  done  something  in  the  way 
of  transmitting  deposits  and  money  orders  by  telegraph.  We  have 
made  no  effort  to  bring  it  prominently  before  the  public,  with  a  view 
to  extending  this  department  of  our  business,  for  the  reason  that  as 
an  established  system  it  would  be  comparatively  easy  for  rogues  to 
abuse  it.  It  is  only  resorted  to  in  cases  of  great  emergency,  where 
money  orders  by  post  cannot  be  delivered  in  time  to  meet  the 
necessities  of  the  case.  It  is  also  confined  mainly  to  the  trans- 
mission of  small  sums.  It  involves  necessarily  the  sending  of  two 
messages.  Large  amounts  required  in  commercial  transactions  are 
daily  transmitted  or  exchanged  in  this  manner  by  the  regular 
banking  houses  in  all  the  principal  cities. 

PROPOSITION  TO  OPERATE  TELEGRAPHS  AT  A  LOSS,  AND  MAKE 

MONEY  BY  IT. 

Mr.  Hubbard  proposes,  by  his  new  plan,  to  send  telegrams  at  an 
average  reduction  of  53  per  cent  from  the  present  charges,  which 
we  have  shown  to  be  25  per  cent  less  than  the  European  rates. 
Now,  the  total  receipts  of  the  Western  Union  Telegraph  Company 
for  the  year  ending  June  30, 186T,  were  16,568,925,  and  a  reduc- 
tion of  53  per  cent  would  leave  $  3,087,405. 

The  working  expenses  for  the  year  were     ..  '      .    $3,944,005 
Receipts  with  Mr.  Hubbard's  proposed  tariff,    .  3,087,405 

Loss  for  the  year   .«        .         .         .         .        $856,600 

Mr.  Hubbard  acknowledges  that  neither  the  government  nor  any 
company  can  transmit  messages  at  the  above  rates  without  loss, 
but  claims  that  "  a  company  with  well-constructed  lines,  built  for 
cash,*ca,n  transmit  messages  at  these  rates,  in  connection  with  the 
post-office,  and  realize  a  large  profit."  Precisely  how  this  is  to  be 
done,  or  what  the  lines  "  built  for  cash  "  have  got  to  do  about  it, 
does  not  appear.  Mr.  Hubbard  says  in  his  pamphlet  that  "  the 
largest  part  of  the  lines  of  the  Western  Union  Company  were 
constructed  before  the  rise  in  prices,  and  on  a  gold  basis."  Now, 
if  he  means  that  lines  built  on  a  paper  basis  can  be  worked  cheaper 
than  those  constructed  on  a  gold  one,  we  would  be  glad  to  hear 
his  reasons  for  so  singular  a  notion. 


11 


SPECULATIVE  TELEGKAPH  SCHEMES. 

We  consider  it  our  duty  to  say  a  word  concerning  the  swarm 
of  adventurers  who  are  canvassing  the  country  for  subscriptions 
to  utterly  worthless  telegraph  stock,  and  who  are  besieging  the 
halls  of  Congress  every  year  for  some  recognition  or  advantage 
which  shall  enable  them  the  more  readily  to  impose  upon  the 
public. 

The  National  Telegraph  Company  is  an  example  in  point. 
This  concern,  which  claims  to  have  organized  two  years  ago 
under  an  act  of  Congress,  and  which  has  filled  the  country  with 
runners  begging  for  subscriptions  to  its  stock,  has  never  set  a 
pole. 

The  losses  which  have  occurred  in  the  operation  of  competing 
lines  are  enormous.  The  country  is  full  of  people  who  have  lost 
money  in  these  schemes,  which,  after  a  brief  existence,  are  wound 
up  and  their  effects  disposed  of  by  the  sheriff. 

The  present  condition  of  all  the  opposition  lines  is  very  pre- 
carious. The  Franklin  Company  was  made  by  a  consolidation 
of  the  Insulated  Company,  having  four  wires  between  Boston  and 
Washington,  and  the  old  Franklin  Company,  having  two  wires 
between  Boston  and  New  York.  The  capital  of  the  former  was 
8  1,250,000,  and  of  the  latter  8  500,000.  The  new  organization 
has  been  in  operation  about  two  years,  during  which  time  its  re- 
ceipts have  fallen  so  far  below  its  expenses  that  it  has  contracted 
a  debt  of  8  125,000 ;  and  its  lines  have  deteriorated  to  such  an 
extent  that  a  large  sum  would  have  to  be  expended  to  put  them 
in  proper  condition  for  business.  The  stock  of  such  companies  is 
valueless  as  an  investment,  and,  in  respect  to  some  of  them,  it  is 
doubtful  if  their  property  could  be  sold  for  a  sum  sufficient  to 
pay  their  indebtedness. 

The  Atlantic  and  Pacific  Company  has  a  line  from  New  York 
to  Chicago,  via  Albany,  Buffalo,  Cleveland,  and  Sandusky,  aver- 
aging about  two  wires  for  each  line.  Its  lines  are  built  under 
a  contract  to  take  stock  in  payment,  at  the  rate  of  81,666.66  per 
mile  for  a  line  of  two  wires. 

The  operation  of  these  separate  and  irresponsible  lines,  during 


78 

the  brief  period  of  their  existence,  retards  the  progress  of  legiti- 
mate telegraphy,  and  impairs  the  general  unity  of  the  system. 
Any  legislation  of  Congress  which  is  made  to  further  such  schemes 
has  the  direct  effect  of  aiding  a  class  of  speculators  to  fleece 
a  credulous  public,  by  inducing  them  to  invest  their  money 
in  the  construction  of  lines  which  never  have  paid,  and  never  can 
pay,  the  expenses  of  operating  them,  and  which  are  of  no  benefit 
to  any  persons  but  those  who  originate  them,  and  profit  by  their 
construction. 

MORE  STARTLING  INVENTIONS  FOR  RAPID  TELEGRAPHING. 

We  quote  from  Mr.  Hubbard :  — 

"  Instruments  have  been  recently  invented,  and  are  in  opera- 
tion, either  in  England  or  in  this  country,  by  which  two  great 
hindrances  to  the  efficiency  of  the  telegraph  are  remedied.  Mr. 
Stearns,  president  of  the  Franklin  Telegraph  Company,  has  in- 
vented an  instrument  by  which  messages  are  transmitted  both 
ways  at  the  same  time,  on  the  same  wire,  thus  doubling  its 
capacity  without  any  increase  of  expense.  Sir  Charles  Wheat- 
stone,  in  England,  has  invented  an  instrument  by  which  double 
the  number  of  words  can  be  transmitted  and  received  on  the  same 
wire,  at  an  increased  expense  in  the  preparation  of  the  message 
for  transmission.  Instruments  are  also  in  operation  in  Great  Brit- 
ain, worked  by  boys,  after  instruction  of  one  or  two  days." 

In  regard  to  Mr.  Stearns's  apparatus  for  working  both  ways 
over  one  wire  at  the  same  time,  we  are  compelled  to  say  there  is 
nothing  new  in  the  idea.  Doctor  Gintl,  of  Germany,  invented  it 
many  years  ago,  and  it  was  published  in  an  Italian  work,*  with 
steel-plate  illustration,  issued  in  1861,  translated  into  English  by 
George  B.  Prescott,  of  Albany,  and  published  in  the  Telegraphic 
Journal,  London,  May,  1864.  Moses  G.  Farmer,  Esq.,  of  Bos- 
ton, invented  another  apparatus  for  doing  the  same  thing,  and 
worked  it  between  Boston  and  Portland,  in  1849.  If  there  is 
any  practical  value  in  this  apparatus  it  is  open  —  like  the  Morse 
Telegraph  —  to  the  use  of  all.  Sir  Charles  Wheatstone's  appara- 
tus, by  which  double  the  number  of  words  can  be  received  on  the 
same  wire,  will  probably  prove  of  the  same  practical  value  as 

*  Manuale  di  Telegrafia  Elettrica,  di  Carlo  Matteucci,  Torino,  1861. 


79 

many  similar  inventions,  which  in  theory  can  transmit  intelli- 
gence with  the  greatest  accuracy  at  the  astonishing  rate  of  five 
or  ten  thousand  words  an  hour,  but  in  practice  have  never  proved 
of  the  slightest  value. 

It  is  suggestive,  that,  of  more  than  a  hundred  inventions  de- 
signed to  supersede  the  Morse  telegraph,  the  latter  instrument  is 
used  to-day  on  more  than  490,000  miles  of  wire  out  of  the  total  of 
500,000  in  operation  in  all  parts  of  the  world.  Mr.  Hubbard's 
assertion,  "  that  instruments  are  in  operation  in  Great  Britain, 
worked  by  boys,  after  instruction  of  one  or  two  days,"  may  be  true. 
From  all  accounts,  the  use  of  boys  —  and  charity  boys  at  that  — 
has  been  the  great  curse  of  telegraphy  in  England,  until  the  saying 
has  become  common  there,  when  describing  a  remarkably  poor 
specimen  of  chirography,  that  "it  is  written  as  badly  as  a  tele- 
graph despatch."  We  hope  the  day  is  far  distant  when  our 
messages  shall  be  transmitted  by  boys  with  one  or  two  days'  in- 
struction. 

We  hardly  need  say  that  it  is  for  our  interest  to  adopt  every 
improvement  whereby  the  despatch  of  business  within  a  given 
time  can  be  materially  increased.  It  is  certainly  cheaper  for  us 
to  provide  new  instruments,  at  almost  any  cost  which  will  ever  be 
charged  therefor,  than  to  put  up,  keep  in  repair,  and  operate 
additional  wires  to  produce  the  same  results. 

ERRONEOUS  TABLE  OF  EUROPEAN  STATISTICS. 

We  reproduce  Mr.  Hubbard's  statistical  table  for  the  purpose 
of  pointing  out  some  very  serious  errors  contained  in  it. 

In  U.  S.  Gold.  la  U.  S.  Gold.* 

The  Austrian  florin  is  rated  by  Mr.  Hubbard  at  $  0.41    True  value  $  0.48 

Franc  "  "  "               .20  "  "  .19 

£  Sterling  «  «  "  4.84  "  «  4.86 

Lira  «  «  «               .18^  "  "  .19 

Dollar  of  Norway  «  «  «               .53  "  "  1.09 

Rouble  "  "  "               .2  If-  "  "  .77  J- 

Dollar  of  Spain  "  "  «  1.00  "  «  1.04J- 

*  We  are  indebted  for  the  estimation  of  the  value  of  these  foreign  coins  in  United 
States  gold  to  E.  B.  Elliott,  Esq.,  of  Washington,  D.  C.,  who  has  recently  prepared  a 
valuable  work  on  the  subject. 


80 

These  errors,  in  reducing  foreign  money  into  United  States  gold 
currency  caused  the  following  discrepancies  in  gross  receipts  for 
the  year : — 

Value  in  United  States  True  Value  in  United  -n.ff 

Gold,  according  to  Table.  States  Gold. 

Austria,  $674,344  $789,476.16  $115,132.16 

England,         2,481,500  2,491,756.02  10,256.02 

Italy,  766,750  '  782,859.09  16.109.09 

Norway,  182,131  374,573.15  192,442.15 

Russia,  372,309  1,451,310.72  1,079,001.72 

Spain,  554,475  576,654.00       .  22,179.00 

Discrepancy,  $  1,435,120.14 

France,  1,541,518  1,464,442.10  77,075.90 

Belgium,  194,442  182,611.28  11,830.72 

Bavaria,  136,894  132,383.26  4,510.74 

Discrepancy,  $93,417.36 

Thus  we  find  that  in  reproducing  from  their  various  currencies 

the  gross  telegraphic  receipts  of  six  nations  into  United  States  gold, 

Mr.  Hubbard  makes  the  amount  $  1,435,120.14  less  than  it  should 

be,  and  in  reducing  those  of  three  other  countries  into  our  coin  he 

makes  the  amount  $93,417.36  more  than  it  should  be. 

'He  has  also  failed  to  give  the  receipts  of  the  three  great  Sub- 
marine Telegraph  Companies,  which,  transact  so  important  an 
amount  of  continental  telegraph  business. 

Mr.  Hubbard  gives  the  number  of  stations  in  Switzerland  at 
333.  while  the  best  English  authority  *  gives  it  at  252.  He  also 
gives  the  number  of  messages  transmitted  in  England,  in  1866,  as 
6,127,000,  while  Mr.  Scudamore,  in  his  reply  to  the  statement  of 
the  Electric  and  International  Telegraph  Company,  published  in 
May,  1868, f  points  out  the  fact  that  only  5,781,189  messages  were 
transmitted  throughout  Great  Britain  and  Ireland  during  that  year. 
It  will  be  observed  that  Mr.  Hubbard  has  "  estimated  "  —  that 
is,  guessed  at  —  the  number  of  and  receipts  for  telegrams  in  the 
Netherlands,  Denmark,  Sweden,  Turkey,  and  Greece.  He  esti- 
mates the  average  cost  per  message  to  be  42  cents ;  but  as  we 
happen  to  know  that  the  average  cost  in  Denmark  was  more  than 
twice  this  amount,  we  are  not  willing  to  accept  any  of  his  estimates. 

*  Government  and  the  Telegraphs.    London,  1868. 

t  Return  to  an  order  of  the  Honorable  the  House  of  Commons  for  copy  of  further 
correspondence  between  the  Treasury  and  the  Postmaster-General  relating  to  the 
Electric  Telegraphs  Bill. 


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82 


EUROPEAN,  TELEGRAMS   COUNTED   SEVERAL  TIMES. 

An  examination  of  Mr.  Hubbard's  statement  of  the  number  of 
messages  sent  in  Europe,  in  1866,  will  reveal  the  fact  that  he  has 
included  inland,  international,  and  transit  messages  to  make  up  the 
grand  total.  In  this  way  he  has  counted  the  same  message  several 
times.  For  instance,  messages  sent  from  England  to  France,  or 
any  two  contiguous  countries,  would  be  counted  in  each.  Mes- 
sages between  France  and  Germany  would  be  counted  in  France 
and  Germany  as  international  messages,  and  in  Belgium  and  per- 
haps some  other  country  as  transit.  The  same  would  be  the  case 
between  all  European  countries  whose  territories  do  not  border  on 
each  other.  A  message  going  from  France  to  Russia,  or  from 
England  to  Turkey,  might  be  counted  a  dozen  times.  . 

In  the  United  States  each  message  is  counted  but  once,  al- 
though it  may  traverse  thousands  of  miles  in  reaching  its  place  of 
destination. 

"We  have  not  the  statistics  to  show  what  proportion  the  legiti- 
mate number  of  messages  sent  bears  to  this  fictitious  number ;  but 
by  referring  to  the  Belgian  table  it  will  be  seen  that  692,536  in- 
land and  306,596  international  messages  were  sent  in  1866,  in  a 
total  of  1,128,005.  Taking  this  as  a  fair  average  for  the  whole 
of  Europe,  we  shall  find  that  only  14,012,795  messages  were 
sent  in  1866,  at  an  expense,  in  United  States  currency,  of 
115,286,911.61,  or  about  $  1.09  each. 


LABOR  THE  PRINCIPAL  ELEMENT   OF  EXPENSE    IN  OPERATING 

TELEGRAPHS. 

The  principal  element  of  expense  in  our  business  is  the  cost  of 
labor.*  If  we  can  do  our  work  as  cheaply  as  another  party,  it  is 
clear  that  rates  can  never  be  reduced  below  the  point  at  which  re- 
ceipts and  expenses  are  equal.  Any  material  increase  of  business, 
no  matter  what  the  rates  may  be,  must  be  attended  with  increased 
expense.  And  when  the  capacity  of  the  wires  provided  for  a  par- 

*  The  Western  Union  Telegraph  Company  expended  $  2,573,434.80  for  labor  for 
the  year  ending  June  30,  1867.  See  comparison  of  cost  of  labor  in  Europe  and  the 
United  States  on  page  26. 


ticular  service  is  exhausted,  a  new  question  is  presented  by  the 
necessity  for  providing  additional  Facilities.  By  the  extension  of 
our  lines  this  year  west  of  Chicago,  and  by  the  moderate  increase 
in  the  volume  of  our  business  in  that  section  of  the  country,  it 
will  probably  become  necessary  during  next  year  to  provide  two 
additional  wires  between  Chicago  and  the  Atlantic  coast.  The 
cost  of  these  wires,  if  erected  on  poles  now  standing,  will  be  about 
$120,000.  We  shall  also  be  obliged  to  put  up  an  additional  wire 
between  Washington  and  New  Orleans,  and  between  the  latter 
place  and  Louisville.  The  cost  of  maintaining  the  lines  will  be 
somewhat  increased  by  the  addition  of  these  wires,  and  the  cost 
of  operating  at  each  end,  and  looking  after  them  at  intermediate 
points,  must  also  be  included.  How  is  the  additional  capital  neces- 
sary to  provide  such  increased  facilities  to  be  raised  ?  By  reducing 
rates,  the  result  of  which  is,  that,  even  if  gross  receipts  are  not 
diminished,  the  expenses  are  increased  ?  Is  it  not  by  gradually  in- 
creasing lines  out  of  current  profits,  and  as  gradually  reducing  rates 
after  facilities  for  an  enlarged  business  have  been  provided  ? 


PREVAILING  ERROR  OF  ALL  THEORIZERS  ON  THE  BUSINESS   OF 

TELEGRAPHING. 

All  theorizers  upon  the  subject  of  the  telegraph  fall  into  the 
error  that  the  amount  of  business  which  may  be  done  at  any  point 
(the  rates  being  low  enough)  is  in  the  ratio  of  population.  An 
investigation  of  the  subject  will  show  this  to  be  entirely  erroneous. 
Three  years  ago,  when  the  subject  of  telegraphic  communication 
between  the  Eastern  and  Western  continents  was  discussed  by 
those  most  intimately  connected  with  the  enterprise,  no  one  esti- 
mated the  number  of  messages  which  would  pass  between  the  two 
continents,  daily,  at  a  rate  of  $  50  gold  for  ten  words,  below  500. 
But  few  placed  the  figures  so  low.  Most  of  them  estimated  the 
number  at  two  or  three  times  this  minimum. 

In  1863  Mr.  Cyrus  W.  Field  made  the  following  remarks  be- 
fore the  Chamber  of  Commerce  of  New  York,  in  relation  to  the 
probable  amount  of  business  that  would  be  done  between  Europe  and 
America  when  communication  by  telegraph  should  be  established  : 
"  To  express  my  own  opinion,  from  pretty  large  experience  on  the 


84 

subject,  I  do  not  believe  that  ten  cables  would  begin  to  do  the 
work  which  would,  in  a  short  time,  be  given  to  it." 

At  the  banquet  given  in  London,  in  1864,  to  inaugurate  the 
renewed  attempt  by  the  Atlantic  Telegraph  Company  to  unite 
Europe  and  America  by  means  of  the  Atlantic  cable,  Mr. 
Cromwell  F.  Varley  made  the  following  remarks  touching  the 
amount  of  business  that  would  be  offered  for  transmission  over 
the  cable :  "  I  feel  great  confidence  that,  when  once  a  cable  is 
successfully  laid  across  the  Atlantic,  the  demands  upon  it  will  be 
so  great  that  you  will  have  to  lay  one  or  two  per  annum  for  the 
next  twenty  years,  or  even  more." 

Their  disappointment  was,  therefore,  very  great  when,  after  the 
Atlantic  Cable  was  in  operation,  it  was  found  that  the  daily  average 
at  the  1 100  tariff  was  but  29  messages,  and  at  the  $  50  tariff,  which 
was  in  operation  thirteen  months,  it  was  but  64.  At  the  $  25  rate 
the  average  advanced  to  131 ;  and  although  the  rate  has  been  still 
further  reduced  to  $  16.85,  the  average  is  but  201.  This  illus- 
tration is  sufficient  to  prove  the  fallacy  of  all  reasoning  concern- 
ing telegraph  business  based  merely  upon  population.  We 
venture  the  prediction  that,  at  the  rate  of  $5  between  Europe 
and  America,  the  number  of  messages  which  would  pass  per  day 
would  never  equal  the  number  exchanged  daily  between  New 
York  on  one  hand,  and  Philadelphia  and  Boston  on  the  other. 
The  reason  is  simply  this  :  The  number  of  messages  which  will 
pass  within  a  given  time  between  two  points  depends,  first,  upon  a 
reasonable  charge  for  transmission,  —  a  charge  conveniently  within 
the  means  of  those  having  occasion  to  communicate ;  and  secondly 
and  mainly,  upon  the  number  of  people  at  either  extreme  having 
intimate  business  relations  with  those  at  the  other.  The  vast  com- 
merce of  the  Old  World  and  the  New  is  riot  exchanged  in  detail, 
but  in  bulk.  A  few  banking-houses  on  each  side  make  all  the  ex- 
changes for  both  continents,  and  the  agricultural  products  and  the 
manufactures  of  both  are  also  exchanged  in  substantially  the  same 
manner. 

We  have  shown  how  fallacious  is  the  claim  that  the  increase  of 
business  is  dependent  upon  the  tariff,  by  the  statistics  of  our  own 
and  foreign  countries,  by  which  it  appears  that  business  has  some- 
times largely  increased  at  an  advanced  rate.  We  do  not  desire 


85 

to  be  understood,  however,  as  saying  that  low  tariffs,  under  similar 
circumstances,  will  not  bring  more  business  than  high  ones.  But 
we  do  say  that  it  is  susceptible  of  proof,  that  the  minimum  rate  is 
undoubtedly  much  higher  than  most  of  those  who  theorize  upon 
this  subject  are  willing  to  believe.  Take  the  case  of  the  Atlantic 
Cable  as  an  illustration.  During  the  three  months  at  which  the 
tariff  was  $  100,  and  the  daily  average  of  messages  29,  the  receipts 
per  day  were  £  505.  During  the  thirteen  months,  at  the  average 
of  64  messages  daily,  the  receipts  were  <£579.  During  the  nine 
months,  at  the  average  of  131  messages  per  day,  the  receipts  were 
,£635.  And  for  the  two  months  since  the  rates  were  reduced  to 
816,  the  daily  average  has  been  201  messages,  and  the  average 
receipts  X596. 

Now  it  happens,  fortunately  for  the  Cable  Company,  that  the 
present  volume  of  business  is  considerably  less  than  the  capacity  of 
their  cables  ;  so  that  the  increase  of  that  business  has  been  attended 
with  but  a  very  slight  additional  expense,  the  cost  to  operate  be- 
ing the  same  at  offices  open  day  and  night,  whether  operators  are 
occupied  all  or  only  a  part  of  the  time.  But  suppose,  for  illustration, 
that  the  limit  of  the  capacities  of  the  cables  will  be  reached  when 
the  average  number  of  messages  per  day  is  250.  To  undertake  to 
transmit  any  number  beyond  this  without  further  facilities  would 
result  in  crowding  and  confusing  the  business  to  an  extent  which 
would  inevitably  produce  dissatisfaction.  On  the  other  hand,  to 
provide  an  additional  cable  would  cost  a  sum  of  money  which  it 
might  be  exceedingly  difficult  to  raise.  It  seems  proper,  therefore, 
that  the  profits  from  this  business  should  always  be  considerably  more 
than  enough  to  yield  a  proper  return  for  the  capital  invested,  so  that 
greater  facilities  may  be  provided  out  of  surplus  profits  ;  and,  as 
facilities  are  increased,  rates  may  be  gradually  reduced,  until,  by 
judiciously  pursuing  this  course,  the  charges  for  telegraphing  may 
be  materially  diminished,  without  endangering  the  revenues  to 
which  owners  of  telegraph  property  are  justly  entitled. 


86 


Statistics  of  Traffic  through  the  Atlantic  Cables  from  July  28,  1866,  to 
November  1,  1868. 


Number  of 
Messages  per 
Month. 

Daily  Aver- 
age No.  of 
Messages. 

GROSS  AMOUNT  of  RECEIPTS  accruing  to  the  Two  ATLANTIC 
CABLES,  between  Valentia  and  Heart's  Content. 

Average 
Amount 
per  Day. 

1,1041 
837  ^ 
831  J 

29 

Fr 

am  July    28th  to  31a\  Aug.  ,  1866,  under  £  20  Tai 
Sept.     1st  "  30tk              "          "        «' 
Oct.       1st  "  31st               "          "        " 

'iff  *£  5001 
456  I 
491  J 

£505 

1,530] 

Nov.     1st  "  30th              "          "     £10 

t5021 

1,582 

Dec.      1st  "  31st 

493 

1,686 

Jan.      1st  "  31st            1867       " 

466 

1,764 

Feb.      1st  "  28th              "          " 

649 

2,147 

March  1st  "  31st               "           " 

666 

2,624 

April     1st  "  30th 

722 

2,262 

64 

May      1st 

'  31st 

705 

£579 

1,843 

June     1st 

'  30th              "           ' 

697 

1,432 

July      1st 

'  27th              "           ' 

542 

1,693 

July    18th 

'  31st  Aug.     "           ' 

401 

1,860 

Sept.     1st 

'  30th             " 

615 

2,505 

Oct.       1st 

<  31st               "            <   ' 

f715 

2,292. 

Nov.     1st 

'  30th 

661. 

3,901] 

Dec.      1st 

'  31st              "          "     £ 

.6 

:M732] 

4,739 

Jan.      1st 

<  31st            1868       " 

756 

5,128 

Feb.      1st 

'  29th              "          " 

860 

4,507 

March  1st 

'  31st 

707 

4i320 

131 

April     1st 

<  30th              "          "  ' 

718 

£635 

3,538 

May      1st 

1  31st              "          " 

650 

2,884 

June     1st 

'  30th              "          " 

447 

3,217 

July      1st 

'  31st              "          " 

490 

3,740  . 

Aug.      1st 

653. 

5,053] 
6,341  \ 
6,877  J 

201 

Sept.     1st  "  30th          •    "          "    £ 
Oct.      1st  "  31st               "          " 
Nov.     1st  "  30th 

7.6. 

5011 
615^ 
670  J 

£596 

A  single  wire  between  New  York  and  Plaister  Cove,  Cape 
Breton,  the  eastern  terminus  of  the  Western  Union  Telegraph 
Company's  lines,  not  only  promptly  transmits  all  the  telegraphic 
business  that  is  done  between  Europe  and  America,  but  every 
message  is  telegraphed  back  for  comparison  with  the  original,  to 
insure  correctness. 

*  During  this  month  over  £  100  per  day  were  paid  by  the  New  York  Herald  for 
news  reports,  and  many  persons  sent  messages  as  a  novelty. 

t  During  this  month  the  despatches  sent  by  the  United  States  government  averaged 
over  £  100  per  day. 

J  During  these  months  there  was  extraordinary  excitement  in  cotton. 


PROGRESS 


OF   THE 


ELECTRIC   TELEGRAPH    IN   AMERICA   AND    EUROPE. 


THE  UNITED  STATES. 

THE  United  States  not  only  has  the  distinguished  honor  of  being 
the  birthplace  of  the  inventor  of  the  universally-used  electric  tele- 
graph, but  of  having  constructed  the  first  line  of  practical  tele- 
graph, and  of  being  the  foremost  nation  in  the  world,  at  the  pres- 
ent time,  in  the  number  of  her  telegraph  stations,  extent  of  her 
lines  and  wires,  cheapness  of  her  rates,  and  amount  of  business 
done. 

The  United  States  contains  4,126  telegraph  offices;  62,782 
miles  of  line  ;  125,564  miles  of  wire ;  and  transmits  annually 
12,904,777  telegrams. 

She  has  nearly  as  many  telegraph  stations  as,  and  sends  a  greater 
number  of  telegrams  annually  than,  all  Continental  Europe,  and 
contains  as  many  miles  of  line  as  Belgium,  Bavaria,  France,  Great 
Britain  and  Ireland,  Italy,  Russia,  Switzerland,  and  Spain  com- 
bined. 

PROPORTION  OF  TELEGRAMS  TO  LETTERS. 

The  proportion  of  telegrams  to  letters  in  the  United  States  is 
difficult  of  determination,  from  the  fact  that  our  Post-Office  Depart- 
ment furnishes  no  statistics  of  the  number  of  letters  sent  through  the 
mails,  and  has  no  means  of  ascertaining  the  number  approximate- 
ly, except  by  the  number  of  stamps  sold  annually.  This  mode  of 
estimation  is  very  defective,  because  the  stamps  sold  may  not  have 
been  used,  or  if  used,  may  have  covered  the  postage  on  books,  par- 
cels, and  other  matter.  The  Postmaster-General  states,  in  his  re- 


88 

port  for  1867,  that  there  were  283,762,300  three-cent  stamps  sold 
during  the  preceding  year.  Supposing  each  of  these  stamps  to 
represent  a  letter,  we  have  the  following  comparative  result  of  the 
number  of  telegrams  to  letters  in  the  various  countries  where  the 
telegraph  is  most  extensively  used  :  — 

Proportion  of  telegrams  to  letters  in  the  United  Kingdom,     .  1  to  121 

«          "  "         "       "       "   Switzerland,         .     .      .  1  to    69 

«  "         «       «       "  Belgium,         .      .     .      .  1  to    37 

"  "         "       «      "  United  States,      ...  1  to    22 

EARLY  HISTORY  OF  THE  TELEGRAPH  IN  AMERICA.' 

During  the  first  few  years  after  the  introduction  of  the  electric 
telegraph  its  progress  was  very  slow.  Capitalists  were  afraid  to 
invest  in  an  undertaking  so  novel  and  precarious,  and  as  a  natural 
consequence  there  was  great  difficulty  in  raising  funds  for  properly 
building  the  lines,  and  they  were  constructed  in  a  very  unreliable 
manner,  breaks  and  interruptions  being  rather  the  normal  condition 
of  the  wires  than  the  exception. 

At  a  very  early  period  in  the  history  of  the  electric  telegraph  in 
the  United  States,  a  misunderstanding  occurred  between  the  Morse 
patentees  and  a  contractor  under  them,  the  result  of  which  was 
that  rival  lines  were  constructed  throughout  the  country  before  the 
system  had  been  sufficiently  developed  to  be  remunerative,  even 
without  such  competition. 

The  invention  of  the  letter-printing  telegraph  by  Mr.  House,  in 
1846,  and  the  introduction  of  the  electro-chemical  telegraph  of  Mr. 
Bain  into  this  country,  in  1849,  greatly  facilitated  the  construction 
of  competing  lines. 

The  first  line  operating  under  the  House  patent  was  completed 
in  March,  1849,  from  Philadelphia  to  New  York  City.  The  Bos- 
ton and  New  York  Telegraph  Company,  using  the  same  patent, 
was  completed  in  the  autumn  of  the  same  year,  and  was  followed 
by  one  from  New  York  to  Buffalo,  and  subsequently  to  St.  Louis 
and  Chicago. 

During  the  year  1849,  which  was  very  prolific  in  the  production 
of  competing  lines,  the  Bain  patent  was  introduced  upon  lines  ex- 
tending between  New  York  and  Buffalo,  and  New  York  and  Wash- 


89 

ington,  and,  in  the  succeeding  year,  upon  lines  extending  between 
Boston  and  Montreal,  and  Boston  and  Portland. 

In  1851  there  were  seven  Bain  lines  in  operation  in  the  United 
States,  having  over  2,000  miles  of  wire  ;  eight  House  lines,  having 
about  300  miles  of  wire  :  and  sixty-seven  Morse  lines,  having 
20,000  miles  of  wire.  In  the  autumn  of  this  year,  the  Morse  and 
Bain  lines  between  New  York  and  Washington  were  consolidated  ; 
and  in  the  succeeding  spring  the  Morse  and  Bain  lines  between 
Xew  York  and  Boston  were  united  under  one  company.  The 
union  of  these  lines  was  followed  by  that  of  the  New  York  and 
Buffalo  Morse  and  Bain  lines,  and  subsequently  by  those  of  the 
House  lines  between  these  points. 

EVILS   ARISING  FROM  SEPARATE  ORGANIZATIONS. 

The  consolidation  of  these  lines  was  a  step  in  the  right  direc- 
tion, as  it  increased  the  receipts  and  lessened  the  expenses  of  the 
companies,  while  it  enabled  them  to  do  the  business  better,  by 
possessing  greater  facilities.  Still,  the  great  number  of  separate 
organizations  remaining  throughout  the  country  prevented  that 
unity  and  despatch  in  the  conduct  of  the  business  so  essential  to  its 
success.  Under  these  circumstances,  the  public  failed  to  realize  the 
brilliant  thought  of  instant  communication  between  distant  points. 

A  Boston  house,  doing  business  with  Chicago,  was  obliged  to 
be  content  with  responses  received  on  the  second  or  third  day. 
On  Boston  despatches  for  Chicago  four  tariffs  were  charged ;  and 
a  message  had  to  be  copied  off  and  handed  over  to  other  compa- 
nies for  transmission  at  New  York,  Buffalo,  and  Detroit,  before  it 
reached  its  destination. 

All  this  process  required  time,  and  yet  the  loss  of  time  was  the 
least  of  the  evils  connected  with  such  a  state  of  things.  The 
message,  as  it  left  the  writer's  hands  in  Boston,  was  not  unfre- 
quently  a  very  different  document  when  it  reached  the  Western 
parties,  owing  to  errors  caused  by  its  numerous  retransmissions, 
and  thus  the  necessity  became  urgent  to  unite  these  separate  com- 
panies into  one  living,  vigorous  organization,  by  which  not  only 
repetition  and  error  might  be  avoided,  but  the  messages  followed 
to  their  destination  under  a  single  direction,  and  undivided  respon- 
sibility. 


90 


THE  UNIFICATION  OF  THE  TELEGRAPH  ACCOMPLISHED. 

It  was  at  this  period,  when  segregated  lines  were  feeling  their 
weakness,  and  their  revenues  were  unequal  to  even  a  current 
vigorous  support,  that  a  few  clear-sighted  men  in  the  West  con- 
ceived the  project  of  buying  up  the  groups  of  feeble  organizations, 
and  making  them  direct  leaders  between  the  large  Western  cities. 
The  stock  was  comparatively  valueless,  and  easily  and  cheaply 
bought.  The  needs  of  commercial  intercourse  were  pressing. 
The  project  had  in  it  the  true  elements  of  success,  and  it  was 
accomplished. 

For  seven  years  thereafter  the  purchasers  went  on  improving 
the  lines  thus  acquired,  and  rendering  their  connections  more  cer- 
tain. During  all  these  years  no  dividends  were  paid.  Time  and 
money  and  all  the  earnings  of  the  line  were  devoted  to  that 
series  of  combinations  which,  from  a  mass  of  weak  and  perishing 
organizations,  culminated  in  the  Western  Union  Telegraph  Com- 
pany. 

This  combination  of  lines  saved  the  system  from  disgrace,  and 
made  it  available  to  commerce  and  to  public  wants.  No  increase 
of  rates  followed  any  of  these  movements  ;  and  none  would  ever 
have  been  made,  had  not  war  come  to  change  values,  and  rendered 

7  O  ' 

it  necessary. 

At  the  East,  the  American  Telegraph  Company,  organized  in 
1855,  followed  a  similar  course,  and  ultimately  controlled  lines 
extending  throughout  the  Atlantic  seaboard  and  Mississippi 
Valley.  These  two  companies,  working  in  connection  and  har- 
mony, covered  the  entire  area  of  the  United  States,  and  per- 
formed the  business  of  telegraphing  better  than  it  had  ever  been 
done  before. 

In  1863  the  United  States  Telegraph  Company  was  organ- 
ized, and  constructed  lines  in  the  territories  occupied  by  both  the 
Western  Union  and  American  companies ;  but  in  1865,  with 
16,000  miles  of  wire,  —  all  newly  built,  —  worked  to  their  full 
capacity  during  the  year  they  were  unable  to  meet  their  cur- 
rent expenses ;  but  under  the  most  vigorous  administration,  with  its 
expenses  reduced  within  the  closest  limits,  found  that  it  was  conduct- 
ing its  business  at  an  average  net  loss  of  nearly  $  10, 000  per  month. 


91 

In  the  spring  of  1866  the  Western  Union,  American,  and 
United  States  Telegraph  Companies  were  consolidated,  thus  pro- 
ducing a  complete  unification  of  the  great  telegraphic  system  of  the 
United  States,  and  rendering  it  the  most  complete  and  extensive 
in  the  world.  This  consolidation,  however,  gave  the  Western 
Union  Telegraph  Company  no  monopoly  of  the  business.  The 
Morse  patent  having  expired,  and  no  exclusive  privileges  being 
granted  by  either  State  or  national  governments,  the  construction 
and  operation  of  telegraph  lines  within  the  jurisdiction  of  the  United 
States  remained  freely  open  to  all. 

TELEGRAPH  COMPANIES  JN  THE  UNITED  STATES. 

The  following  list  of  some  of  the  more  important  telegraph  com- 
panies now  doing  business  in  the  United  States  will  convey  an  idea 
of  the  importance  of  this  interest :  Bankers  and  Brokers'  Telegraph 
Company,  capital  $  1,050,000,  lines  extending  from  New  York  to 
Washingtpn  ;  Pacific  and  Atlantic  Telegraph  Company,  capital 
$3,000,000,  lines  completed  from  Philadelphia  to  Pittsburg  and 
Cincinnati,  and  extending ;  Franklin  Telegraph  Company,  capital 
$1,000,000,  lines  extending  from  Boston  to  Washington  ;  Inter- 
national Telegraph  Company,  capital  $300,000,  lines  completed 
from  Boston  to  Bangor,  Me.,  and  will  be  extended  farther  east; 
Keystone  Telegraph  Company,  lines  extending  from  Philadelphia 
to  Harrisburg  and  Pittsburg ;  International  Ocean  Telegraph  Com- 
pany, lines  extending  from  Lake  City  to  Key  West  and  Havana ; 
Northern  Telegraph  Company,  capital  $  100,000,  lines  completed 
from  Boston  to  Bristol,  N.  H.,  and  extending;  Atlantic  and  Pa- 
cific Telegraph  Company,  capital  $5,000,000,  lines  completed  from 
New  York  to  Chicago  and  extending  ;  Great  Western  Telegraph 
Company,  line  completed  between  Chicago  and  Milwaukee  ; 
Northwestern  Telegraph  Company,  capital  $1,150,000,  lines  ex- 
tending from  Milwaukee  through  Wisconsin,  Michigan,  Iowa, 
and  Minnesota ;  Mississippi  Valley  Telegraph  Company,  lines 
extending  between  St.  Paul,  Minn.,  and  St.  Louis,  and  from 
Dubuque  to  Chicago ;  Western  Union  Telegraph  Company,  capi- 
tal $40,347,700,  lines  extending  from  the  Gulf  of  Mexico  to  the 
Gulf  of  the  St.  Lawrence,  and  from  the  Atlantic  to  the  Pacific 
ocean.  There  are  in  addition  to  this  list  quite  a  large  number  of 


92 

* 

companies,  covering  more  or  less  territory,  which,  with  all  of 
the  above  mentioned,  are  independent  organizations,  and  nearly 
all  of  them  engaged  in  competition  with  each  other. 

Private  enterprise  has  with  us,  so  far,  achieved  much  greater 
results  than  governmental  management  in  Europe.  As  regards 
the  tariff  for  messages,  they  are  less  than  the*  rates  established 
in  Europe.  Considerable  reductions  have  been  made  within  the 
past  year,  amounting,  in  some  cases,  to  as  much  as  50. per  cent. 
The  reductions  have  taken  place  to  the  greatest  extent  in  those 
sections  of  the  country  where  there  are  opposition  lines,  the  rates 
over  some  of  these  routes  being  less  than  the  expense  of  doing 
the  business,  but  the  reductions  are  not  confined  to  these  sections. 

The  Western  Union  Telegraph  Company  has  reduced  its  rates 
between  upwards  of  one  thousand  offices  where  there  is  no  oppo- 
sition ;  and  it  is  now  preparing  a  new  tariff  of  rates,  based  upon  air- 
line distances,  between  all  stations,  irrespective  of  the  circuitous 
routes  that  the  lines  take  to  reach  them,  which  will  still  farther 
simplify  and  cheapen  the  system. 

It  is  the  purpose  of  this  company  to  do  the  telegraphing  of  the 
United  States  as  well,  and  at  as  low  rates,  as  it  can  be  done  by  any 
organization  which  can  be  formed,  and  thus  ^maintain  its  posses- 
sion of  the  first  and  most  extensive  system  of  telegraphy  in  the 
world. 

DOMINION  OF  CANADA. 

In  the  Dominion  of  Canada  as  in  the  United  States,  the  tele- 
graph is  free  and  untrammelled  by  governmental  interference, 
and,  next  to  the  United  States,  is  the  best  in  the  world. 

STATISTICS    OP   THE   TELEGRAPH   IN   THE   DOMINION    OF    CANADA. 

Number  of  miles  of  pole  line,  .         .         .  .      .         .       6,746  miles. 

Number  of  miles  of  wire  strung,  .         .  .  8,935      " 

Number  of  offices,  .         .         .         .         .         .         .          382      " 

Number  of  messages  (in  1867),  .         .  .         .       573,219      " 

Gross  receipts  from  all  sources,      '.;','.         .         .         .     $258,000 

Gross  expenses,  .  »•  .         .  .         .         '..".  180,000 

Of  which,  accruing  for  labor,    .         "...         .         .         .        105,000 


93 


AUSTRIA. 

The  telegraph  is  under  the  control  and  management  of  the 
State. 

At  the  end  of  1866  the  system  comprised  851  stations,  with  an 
extent  of  73,854  geographical  miles  of  wire. 

The  total  number  of  persons  employed  by  the  telegraphic 
department  is  1,884. 

TABLE   C. 

Statement  showing  the  Progress  of  Telegraphy  in  Austria. 


DATE. 

Number  of 
Messages. 

Gross  Receipts 
in  Florins. 

Average  Cost 
per  Message 
in  Florins. 

1851      .      .      . 

44  911 

128  736 

2  86 

1852 

62  716 

209  547 

3  34 

1853  

109,347 

308,159 

2  81 

1854  

190  522 

549,697 

2  88 

1855 

204  221 

607,745 

2  97 

1856 

251  948 

778  294 

3  08 

1857  

381,720 

888,905 

2  32 

1858  

419  449 

760,811 

1  81 

1859 

692  379 

951  240 

1  37 

I860 

700  795 

991  275 

1  41 

1861  ;  

846,953 

,226,404 

1  44 

1862              .    .                         

946,675 

,267,966 

1  33 

1863                                                      .    . 

1  130  625 

,290,447 

1  14 

1864  

1,610,663 

,322,948 

0.82 

1865  

1,786,955 

,435,478 

0.80 

1866          .  .                       

2,507,472 

,644,742 

0  65 

Austria  transmitted  44,911  messages  in  1851,  and  381,720  in 
1857,  being  an  increase  of  over  800  per  cent  without  any  average 
reduction  in  rates.  The  increase  in  the  number  of  messages  from 
1857  to  1866  was  less  than  700  per  cent,  notwithstanding  the 
great  reduction  in  the  rates  from  2.32  to  0.65  florins. 


BELGIUM. 


The  statistics  respecting  the  working  of  the  telegraph  in  Bel- 
gium are  used  by  Mr.  Washburne  primarily  to  prove  the  superior 
advantages  and  excellence  of  the  Belgian  telegraphic  system  and 
arrangement,  but  chiefly  to  show  that  a  cheapened  rate  has  in- 


94 


creased  its  use,  and  that  to  secure  that  result  in  this  country  the 
telegraph  must  be  placed  under  governmental  control. 

Scarcely  any  two  nations  could  be  named  whose  conditions  are 
more  unlike. 

The  area  of  Belgium  is  about  one  fourth  that  of  the  State  of 
New  York,  with  nearly  the  same  population.  Its  greatest  length 
is  175  miles,  its  width  105. 

The  three  chief  cities  of  Belgium  are  not  more  than  thirty 
miles  apart,  while  those  of  secondary  rank  are  equally  contiguous. 
All  the  railroads  in  the  kingdom  belong  to  the  government,  and  a 
large  proportion  of  the  telegraph  offices  are  at  the  railway  stations, 
the  post-offices  being  merely  offices  of  deposit,  from  which  mes- 
sages are  despatched  free  of  charge  to  the  nearest  telegraph  office, 
if  in  the  same  district ;  otherwise  by  special  messenger,  on  the  pay- 
ment of  an  extra  fee. 

As  the  government  of  the  United  States  owns  no  railroads,  they 
could  not  use  the  stations  for  offices,  except  by  special  arrange- 
ments, which  can  as  readily  be  effected  by  private  companies. 


TABLE  D. 
Statement  showing  the  Progress  of  Telegraphy  in  Belgium. 


DATE. 

Number  of 

Messages. 

Gross  Receipts 
in  Francs. 

Average  Cost 
per  Message 
in  1'rancs. 

1851  

14,025 

88  674 

6  32 

1852  

27  217 

165  973 

6  07 

1853 

52  050 

265  536 

5  10 

1854 

60  415 

280  845 

4  65 

1855  

61,443 

265  939 

4  33 

1856  

99,273 

359  579 

3  62 

1857                  ... 

119  050 

407  Oil 

3  42 

1858...  

145,726 

413  996 

2  83 

1859  

196  240 

506  006 

2  57 

I860   .       

225  819 

527  743 

2  34 

1861 

268  968 

588  532 

2  19 

1862  

291,787 

605  044 

2  07 

1863  

416  113 

612  313 

1  47 

1864 

564  497 

789  399 

1  44 

1865  

674,034 

865  640 

1  28 

1866  

1,128,005 

962  213 

0  85 

1867  

•  1  293  770 

1  074  214 

0  85 

95 


TABLE  E. 


Statement  showing  the  Lengths  of  Lines,  $c. 


DATE. 

Lengths  of 

Lengths  of 
Wires. 

Numher  of 
Stations. 

Number  of 
Instru- 
ments. 

1862  

Miles. 
1,174 

Miles. 
2  983 

196 

290 

1863  

1  644 

3  875 

252 

365 

1864  

1  856 

4  421 

280 

420 

1865  

2  000 

5  400 

307 

460 

1866  

2,187 

6  146 

356 

556 

1867  

2.232 

7  161 

374 

574 

TABLE  F. 

Statement  showing  the  Number  of  Messages. 


DATE. 

Inland. 

International. 

Transit. 

Total. 

1851  

6,652 

6,054 

1,319 

14025 

1852  

9,807 

10,103 

7,307 

27  217 

1853..    .  .          

14  159 

20  656 

17  539 

52  050 

1854 

16  719 

29  492 

14  204 

60  415 

1855  

17,279 

34,725 

9,429 

61,443 

1856  

32,862 

45,375 

21,036 

99,273 

1857  

41  434 

48,367 

29  249 

119050 

1858      .          

47  673 

58,094  • 

39  959 

145  726 

1859  

65,465 

83,780 

46,995 

196,240 

I860  

80,216 

95,499 

50,404 

225,819 

1861  

97,945 

115,121' 

55,902 

268,968 

1862  

105,274 

129,935 

56  578 

291  787 

1863   .  .  .. 

188  825 

162  178 

65  110 

416  113 

1864.. 

252  30  1 

197  547 

96  649 

546  497 

1865  

332,721 

252,133 

89,183 

674,037 

1866  

692,536 

306,596 

128,873 

1,128,005 

1867  

819  668 

359  652 

114  550 

1  293  870 

96 


TABLE   G. 
Statement  showing  the  Gross  Receipts. 


DATE. 

Inland. 

International. 

Transit. 

Total. 

1852  

Francs. 

Francs. 

Francs. 

Francs. 
88,674 

1853  

265  536 

1854..      ..               

280  845 

1855 

265  939 

1856  

359  579 

1857  

407  Oil 

1858  

413,926 

1859  

506,006 

I860  

142,344 

232,877 

149  969 

527  743 

1861          

171  225 

237,748 

158  558 

588  532 

1862                                          .    . 

176  643 

280  449 

147  952 

605  044 

1863  

211,063 

277,266 

124,033 

612368 

1864.    ..                 

282  591 

307,956 

198  850 

789  399 

1865                               ...      . 

345  289 

340,103 

180  247 

865  640 

1866 

408  634 

369  900 

183  680 

962  214 

1867  

480,887 

444,245 

149  082 

1  074  214 

TABLE  H. 
Statement  showing  the  Receipts  and  Expenditure  of  Telegraphs. 


DATE. 

Receipts. 

Expenditures. 

Loss. 

Profits. 

1851      .                       ... 

Francs. 
88  674 

Francs. 
309  116 

Francs. 
220,431  39 

Francs. 

1852 

165  973 

102  947 

63  025  88 

1853  

265,536 

170  735 

94  800  85 

1854      

280,845 

139  795 

141  050  61 

1855 

265  939 

161  500 

104  439  67 

1856 

359  579 

202  599 

156  980  1  1 

1857  

407,01  1 

«  283,171 

123  840  23 

1858.    .    .                         ..    .. 

413,926 

293  891 

120  035  19 

1859 

506  006 

375  343 

130  662  75 

I860  

527,743 

403,500 

124  243  73 

1861  

588,532 

408,261 

180  271  33 

1862 

605  044 

515  800 

89  241  86 

1863  

612,363 

653,280 

41  417  19 

1864  

789,399 

670,424 

118  974  83 

1865      .    .. 

865  640 

948516 

22  876  20 

1866 

962  214 

1  217  496 

255  282  00 

1867  

1,074,214 

1,128,703 

54  489  00 

97 


TABLE  I. 


Statement  shotting  the  Average  of  Receipts,  reduced  to  Dollars,  and  the 
Average  of  Messages. 


DATK. 

Gross  Receipts. 

Number  of  Messages. 

Number  of 
Inhabitants 
averaging 
to  each 
Station. 

Average  per 
Mile  of  Line, 
in  Gold. 

Average  per 
Station,  in 
Gold. 

Average  per  Station. 

Average  for  each 
1,000  inhabitants. 

Inland. 

Total. 

Inland. 

Total. 

1851  

1852   .  . 

1853 

1854  

1855  

1856      . 

1857 

1858 

11 
15 
18 
22 
23 
41 
56 
74 
150 

24 
34 
40 
48 
52 
78 
100 
130 
217 

1  859  

1860 

1861 

1862. 
1863. 
1864. 
1865. 
1866. 
1867. 

$103.08 
74.50 
85.06 
86.56 
87.89 
91.70 

$616.37 
586.00 
563.85 
563.94 
540.00 
666.40 

537 

749 
901 
1,084 
1,945 
2,191 

1,488 
1,651 
1,951 
2,195 
3,168 
3,450 

23,980 
17,857 
16,071 
14,658 
12,690 

The  telegrams  of  Belgium  are  of  three  distinct  sorts,  —  internal, 
international,  and  transit.  The  system  differs  essentially  from  that 
of  the  United  States,  inasmuch  as  the  principal  business  of  the 
Belgian  telegraph  is  to  transmit  messages  from  one  country  to 
another,  whilst  the  principal  business  of  the  American  telegraph 
is  the  conveyance  of  internal  messages.  The  only  international 
messages  transmitted  on  the  lines  in  the  United  States  are  those 
sent  to  Europe  by  the  Atlantic  cable,  to  Cuba  by  the  Cuban 
cable,  and  to  the  various  stations  in  the  Dominion  of  Canada. 

One  of  the  arguments  used  in  favor  of  the  'assumption  of  tele- 
graphs by  government  is,  that  in  its  hands  the  telegraph  is  more 
largely  accessible  to  the  people,  and  more  freely  used.  The  facts 
are  as  follows,  giving  Belgium  the  benefit  of  the  increase  of  mes- 
sages shown  by  the  last  reduction  of  her  tariff. 

BELGIUM. 

Population,  5,000,000  ;  messages,  692,536.     Ratio,  one  message 
to  each  seventh  person. 
7 


98 


GREAT    BRITAIN. 


Population,  29,500,000  ;  messages,  5,781,189.  Ratio,  one  mes- 
sage to  each  fifth  person. 

UNITED    STATES. 

Population,  31,148,047  ;  messages,  12,904,770.  Ratio,  one  mes- 
sage to  every  two  and  one  half  persons. 

These  facts  prove  a  clear  advantage  in  favor  of  private  control. 

BAVARIA. 

This  country  possesses  2,115  miles  of  lines,  and  4,945  miles  of 
wire. 

Gross  receipts  for  1866,  322,886  -florins.  Expenditures,  258,625 
florins. 

DENMAKK. 

This  country  now  contains  2,515  miles  of  wire,  and  eighty-nine 
telegraphic  stations  open  to  the  public.  The  Morse  apparatus  is 
the  only  one  employed.  Of  these  eighty-nine  stations,  fifty-three 
belong  to  the  government,  twenty-one  to  private  telegraph  compa- 
nies, and  fifteen  to  railroads. 

The  tariff  is  fixed  at  ninety  cents  for  a  local  telegram  of 
twenty  words  between  any  points  in  the  kingdom.  In  1867  there 
were  transmitted  308,150  telegrams,  of  which  174,560  were  local 
and  133,590  foreign.  All  the  stations  send  written  despatches  in 
all  languages,  even  in  cipher,  the  only  conditions  being  legible 
writing  in  an  alphabet  transmissible  by  the  Morse  apparatus. 

Money  orders  to  the  amount  of  50  rix-dollars  can  be  paid  at 
all  post-offices  by  means  of  the  telegraph.  The  sum  being  de- 
posited at  the  original  office,  an  official  telegram  is  sent  to  the 
place  designated,  ordering  payment. 

For  this  service  the  sender  has  only  to  pay  the  tariff  on  the  offi- 
cial telegram.  Messages  can  be  sent  from  points  where  there  are 
no  telegraphic  stations,  by  sending  them  by  post  or  by  any  other 
mode  of  transportation  to  the  nearest  telegraph  station.  These 
telegrams  can  be  paid  by  a  postage-stamp  affixed  to  a  designated 
part  of  the  form.  These  forms  are  the  same  as  the  printed  en- 


99 

velopes,  and  can  be  procured  at  all  post  and  telegraph  offices.  At 
the  top  of  these  forms  is  printed  an  extract  from  the  rules  for  the 
transmission  of  despatches.  The  stamps  are  detached  from  the 
forms  and  sent  to  the  Department  of  Finances  at  the  same  time 
that  the  other  reports  are  forwarded.  It  is  proposed  to  extend 
these  privileges  to  the  private  and  railroad  telegraph  stations. 

From  1863  to  1867  the  telegraphic  intercourse  between  the 
Scandinavian  countries  has  increased  each  year  twenty-five  per 
cent. 

ENGLAND. 

England  was  among  the  first  countries  in  Europe  to  adopt  the 
electric  telegraph  ;  and,  next  to  the  United  States,  is  the  foremost 
nation  in  the  world  in  the  extent  of  her  lines,  the  number  of  her 
offices,  the  cheapness  of  her  rates,  and  the  number  of  messages 
annually  transmitted.  With  a  population  about  three  quarters  as 
large  as  that  of  France,  she  possesses  nearly  twice  as  many  telegraph 
stations,  and  annually  transmits  more  than  twice  as  many  messages. 

There  are  in  operation  in  Europe  fifty-five  submarine  cables, 
varying  in  length  from  three  to  1,500  miles,  and  containing  a  total 
length  of  over  11,000  miles  of  insulated  wire,  nearly  all  of  which 
were  laid  and  are  owned  by  English  capitalists.  The  success  of 
the  Atlantic  cables,  also  laid  by  English  companies,  is  another 
illustration  of  what  can  be  accomplished  by  private  enterprise  un- 
trammelled by  governmental  interference  ;  and  affords  a  striking 
contrast  to  the  fate  of  the  Red  Sea  cable  laid  by  the  British  gov- 
ernment, and  which  has  proved  one  of  the  greatest  failures 
recorded  in  the  annals  of  submarine  telegraphy.  This  cable, 
which  was  to  connect  Suez  and  Kurrachee,  3,500  miles  in  length, 
was  laid  in  five  sections,  but  never  worked  a  day  through  its 
entire  length. 

For  some  unexplained  reason  the  British  post-office  department 
has  been  determined  to  absorb  the  telegraph  system  of  the  United 
Kingdom,  and  through  the  indefatigable  efforts  of  Mr.  Scudamore, 
one  of  the  secretaries  of  the  department,  the  British  government 
was  finally  induced  to  purchase  the  property  of  all  the  telegraph 
companies  in  the  kingdom,  and  thus  monopolize  the  business.  The 
price  to  be  paid  for  the  lines  is  twenty  times  the  net  earnings  of 
the  companies  for  the  past  year. 


100 


That  the  English  government  has  made  a  serious  mistake  in 
assuming  the  control  of  the  telegraph  we  have  no  question ;  but 
its  operation  will  be  better  in  its  hands  than  it  would  be  in  that  of 
our  government,  for  the  reason  that  its  employees  are  not  removed 
with  every  change  of  administration,  as  government  officials  are  in 
the  United  States. 

Statement  showing  the  Progress  of  Telegraphy  in  Great  Britain 
and  Ireland. 


YEAB. 

No.  of  Offices. 

No.  of  Miles 
*    of  Line. 

No.  of  Miles 
of  Wire. 

No.  of  Messages. 

I860  

1,032 

10,854 

51,556 

1  863  839 

1861 

1  391 

11  538 

55  004 

2  123  589 

1862 

1  616 

12  711 

57  879 

2  676  352 

.     1863  

1,755 

13,944 

65,726 

3  186  724 

1864       

1  831 

14,981 

72  374 

3  924  855 

1865 

2  040 

16  066 

77  440 

4  662  687 

1866  

2,151 

16,588 

80,466 

5  781  189 

FRANCE. 

The  French  system  of  telegraphs  comprised,  in  1866,  20,628 
miles  of  route,  68,687  miles  of  wire,  and  1,209  stations  open  to 
the  public.  The  number  of  messages  amounted  to  2,842,554. 
The  gross  receipts  for  the  year  were  7,707,590,  and  the  ex- 
penditures were  8,983,460,  showing  a  loss  for  the  year  of 
1,275,870. 

The  receipts  are  divided  as  follows :  — 

301  stations  collect  less  than  200  francs  each. 


179 

185 

354 

84 

63 

17 

12 

6 

4 

2 

1 

1 

1,209  total. 


from 
u 

u 

H 


200  to         500 

500  to      1,000 

1,000  to      5,000 

5,000  to    10,000 

10,000  to    30,000 

30,000  to    50,000 

50,000  to  100,000 

100,000  to  200,000 

200,000  to  300,000 

300,000  to  400,000 

527,000. 

620,000: 


101 

These  stations  are  situated  in  89  departments,  viz. :  — 

1.  Department  de  la  Seine,  collecting  2,822,367  francs. 

2.  «  Bouches  de  Rhone,  "  747,228  " 

3.  "  Seine  inferieure,  "  608,737  " 

4.  «  Rhone,  "  348,514  " 

5.  "  Nord,  «  265,705  " 

6.  "  Gironde,  "  260,615  " 

7.  "  Loire  inferieure,  "  139,797  " 

8.  "  Haut  Rhin,  "  135,483  " 

9.  «  Herault,  «  134,388  " 
10.  «  Alpes  Maritime^,  «  101,183  " 

Nine  other"  departments  collect  annually  between  90,000  down  to 
50,000  francs,  the  remaining  seventy  from  49,000  down  to  4,653 
francs. 

Paris  (Department  de  la  Seine)  has  forty-six  stations  within  the 
fortifications.  The  gross  receipts  amounted,  in  1866,  to  2,794,- 
768.40  francs,  being  more  than  one  third  of  the  total  receipts  of 
the  whole  empire. 

The  receipts  in  Paris  are  divided  as  follows :  — 

Place  de  la  Bourse,  527,906  francs. 

Rue  de  la  Grenelle,  283,972       " 

Grand  Hotel,  271,880       « 

Rue  Lafayette,  250,967       " 

Rue  J.  J.  Rousseau,  198,465       " 

Rue  St.  Cecile,  139,916       tt 

Aux  Champs  Elysees,  131,059       " 

t 

Six  other  stations  collect  from  85,000  to  50,000,  six  from  50,000 
to  20,000  ;  the  remainder  from  19,000  down  to  2,123  francs. 

The  telegraph  system  of  France  constitutes  a  distinct  depart- 
ment of  the  government  service  under  Viscount  A.  de  Vougy  as 
Director-General.  Under  him  are  five  general  inspectors,  form- 
ing a  kind  of  council,  nine  division  inspectors,  seventy-five  inspec- 
tors, thirty-eight  sub-inspectors,  and  one  electrical  engineer. 
.There  are  altogether  3,708  persons  on  the  staff. 


102 


DECREES   REGULATING   THE   USE    OF   THE   TELEGRAPH   IN 

FRANCE. 

The  following  is  a  digest  of  the  decrees  issued  by.  the  French 
government  regulating  the  use  of  the  telegraph  in  the  empire. 

~Lst.  All  persons  whose  identity  is  established  are  allowed  to 
correspond  by  the  government  electric  telegraph. 

2d.  Private  correspondence  is  always  subordinate  to  the  neces- 
sity of  government  service. 

&d.  Despatches  are  to  be  written  in  ordinary  and  intelligible 
language,  dated  and  signed  by  the1  sender,  and  to  be  given  to  the 
officer  of  the  telegraph  station,  whose  duty  it  is  to  copy  in  full  the 
despatch,  with  the  address  of  the  sender. 

4th.  The  director  of  a  station  may,  on  grounds  of  public  order 
and  morality,  refuse  to  transmit  a  despatch.  In  case  of  dispute, 
reference  is  to  be  made,  in  Paris,  to  the  minister  of  the  interior ;  in 
the  provinces  to  the  prefect,  sub-prefect,  or  other  constituted 
authority.  On  the  receipt  of  a  despatch,  the  director  of  the  station 
may  withhold  its  delivery  for  like  reasons. 

5th.  Private  correspondence  may  be  suspended  at  any  time  by 
the  government.  The  government  will  not  assume  any  responsibil- 
ity for  errors  in  the  transmission  of  despatches. 

6th.  The  director  of  the  station  must  be  satisfied  as  to  the 
identity  of  the  sender's  signature.  If  the  director  refuses  the 
transmission  of  a  message,  he  must  state  his  reason  in  writing  on 
the  despatch.  He  must  indorse  on  it  "  political,"  "  offensive," 
"  not  consistent  with  public  geod,"  etc. 

7th.  No  line  of  electric  telegraph  can  be  established  or  em- 
ployed for  the  transmission  of  correspondence  except  by  the  gov- 
ernment, or  on  its  authority.  Any  person  transmitting,  without 
authority,  signals  from  one  place  to  another,  whether  by  electric  tele- 
graph, or  in  any  other  way,  is  liable  to  imprisonment  from  one 
month  to  a  year,  and  a  fine  of  1,000  to  10,000  francs,  and  the 
government  may  order  the  destruction  of  the  apparatus  and  tele- 
graph employed. 

Sth.  Any  one  accidentally  interrupting  the  correspondence  of 
the  electric  telegraph,  or  injuring  in  any  way  the  lines  or  appar- 
atus, is  liable  to  a  fine  of  from  16  to  3,000  francs. 


103 

9th.  Any  one  wilfully  causing  an  interruption,  by  injuring  the 
lines  or  apparatus,  is  punishable  by  imprisonment  from  three 
months  to  two  years,  and  a  fine  of  100  to  1,000  francs.  Any 
one  who  shall  menace  an  operator  during  periods  of  insurrection- 
ary movements  is  subject  to  a  fine  of  1,000  to  5,000  francs. 

Wth.  Written  statements  by  telegraph  officers  to  be  received 
as  evidence  in  all  complaints. 

~Llth.  Reimbursements  of  charges  on  despatches,  in  consequence 
of  delays  or  errors  in  transmission,  cannot  be  made  except  by  the 
administration.  When  a  despatch  is  withdrawn  by  the  forwarder 
before  transmission,  the  expense  'of  delivery  only  can  be  refunded. 

The  charge  on  despatches  sent  in  the  night  will  be -double  the 
usual  tariff  for  the  day  business  (the  exact  opposite  of  the  Ameri- 
can rule). 

PECULIAR  CHARACTER  OF  THE  FRENCH  TELEGRAPH. 

The  telegraph  lines  in  France  are  nearly  all  owned  and  managed 
by  the  government.  The  English  Submarine  Company,  however, 
is  a  private  enterprise,  and  works  from  Paris  through  Calais  to 
the  United  Kingdom.  There  is  also  another  company  organized 
under  permission  of  the  imperial  government,  for  the  extension  of 
the  lines  into  the  French  colonies  of  Africa.  This  association  is 
called  the  Mediterranean  Electric  Telegraph  Company,  and  it  has 
constructed  its  line  from  Spezzia,  in  Sardinia,  across  Corsica,  Sar- 
dinia, and  the  Mediterranean,  to  B6ne,  in  Africa. 

The  telegraph  in  France  is  regarded  as  one  of  the  most  impor 
tant  arms  of  the  government,  and  the  wires  are  known  as  the 
fingers  of  the  police.  The  Emperor  would  no  sooner  relinquish 
their  control  than  he  would  that  of  his  armies.  By  imperial 
decree,  every  operator  is  created  a  spy  in  the  service  of  the  gov- 
ernment. The  wires  from  every  part  of  France  centre  in  the 
imperial  chamber,  and  not  a  message  passes  throughout  the  em- 
pire which  is  not  examined  by  government  inspectors. 

Of  the  promptness,  regularity,  or  correctness  with  which  French 
telegraphs  are  conducted  no  proof  is  given  by  which  superior 
excellence  is  established.  There  is  nothing  in  the  whole  exhibit, 
or  in  the  actual  working  of  the  French  telegraphs,  which  presents 
any  reason  for  the  assumption  that  governments  manage  telegraphs 
better  than  the  people. 


104 


TABLE    J. 
Statement  showing  the  Progress  of  Telegraphy  in  France. 


DATE. 

Number  of 
Messages. 

Gross  Receipts 
in.  Francs. 

Average  Cost 
per  Message 
in  Francs. 

1851  

9  014 

76  722 

7.84 

1852  

48  105 

540  891 

11  28 

1853 

142  061 

1  511  909 

10  64 

1854  

236  018 

2  064  983 

8.74 

1855  

254  532 

2  487  159 

9  77 

1856  

360  299 

3  191  102 

8  68 

1857 

412  616 

3  333  695 

8  06 

1858  

463  973 

3  516  633 

7  60 

1859  

598  701 

4  0*2  799 

6  72 

1860 

720  250 

4  188  065 

5  81 

1861 

920  357 

4919  737 

5  34 

1862  

1  518  044 

5  30°  440 

3  49 

1863  

1  754  867 

5  937  904 

3  38 

1864 

1  967  748 

6  1°3  272 

3  13 

1865  

2  473  747 

7  052  139 

2.88 

1866  

2  842  554 

7  707  590 

2  79 

INCREASE  IN  TELEGRAMS  NOT  DUE  TO  LOW  RATES. 

It  will  be  observed,  by  an  examination  of  the  above  table,  that 
low  tariffs  are  not  the  only  causes  of  the  enlarged  use  of  the  tele- 
graph. The  annual  percentage  of  increase  in  messages,  as  tariffs 
were  gradually  reduced,  was  vastly  less  than  during  those  years 
when  the  rates  remained  unchanged.  During  the  year  of  1851 
only  9,014  telegrams  were  transmitted  through  the  French  em- 
pire, the  tariff  averaging  $  1.60  per  message.  Five  years  later, 
notwithstanding  that  the  average  cost  per  message  had  been 
increased  to  $  1.73,  the  number  of  messages  had  increased  to 
360,299,  and  in  1858  to  463,973,  —  more  than  fifty  times  the  num- 
ber sent  in  1851,  or  an  increase  of  more  than  jive  thousand  per  cent 
in  eight  years,  without  any  reduction  in  rates.  The  increase  in  the 
number  of  messages  during  the  next  eight  years,  from  1858  to 
1866,  was  only  six  hundred  per  cent,  notwithstanding  a  reduction 
in  the  tariff  from  7.60  to  2.79  francs. 

This  same  peculiarity  of  increase,  without  regard  to  the  cost,  is 
also  observable  in  all  other  countries,  as  will  be  seen  by  a  perusal 
of  the  official  tables. 


105 


TABLE  K. 

Statement  showing  the  Progress  of  Telegraphy  in  France. 


Number  of  Messages 
Annually. 

Gross  Receipts  per  Annum  in  Francs. 

Average  Cost  per 
Message. 

1 

Home. 

Foreign. 

Total. 

Home. 

Foreign. 

Total. 

Home. 

Foreign. 

Total. 

Fr.       ct. 

Fr.       ct. 

Fr.       ct. 

Fr.  ct. 

Fr.ct 

Fr.  ct. 

1851 

9,014 

76,722.60 

7.84 

1852 

48.105 

542,891.58 

1128 

1853 

142,061 

1.511.9.9.57 

10.64 

185* 

235,018 

2,064,988.71 

8.84 

1855 

254,532 

2,487,159.21 

9.77 

1856 

360,299 

3,191,102.04 

8.68 

1857 

413,616 

3,333,695.74 

806 

1868 

349887 

114086      463,973:  1,749,913.35 

1,721,715.35 

3.516  ,633.  70  !    5.13 

15.09 

7-60 

1859 

453,998    144.703      598,701    2,072.314  15    1,950:485  63  4,0221799.78     4.57 

13.48 

6.72 

1880 

568,355    151,885       720,250    2,338,525.21    1,829,540.05  4,188.065-26     4.15 

12.05 

5.81 

1861 

734,252    186.357       920.357 

2,840,445.84   2,079,292.12  4,919,737.86     3.82 

11.16 

5.34 

1852 

1S63 

1,291,774    226.270    1,518,044 
1,490,1)23    254,844  '  1,754,867 

2,934,490.21    2,317,950.34  5,302.440.55     231 
3.305.993.85   2,631,911.08  5,937,904.93     2.22 

10.24 
9.94 

3.49 
3.38 

1864 

1,654,406    313.342    1  937.748    3,565.933.68    2,557:338.38  6,123,272.06     2.15 

8.16 

3.13 

1866 

1866 

2,098,645 

2,379,681 

375,102 
462,873 

2,473,747 
2,842,554 

4,159,445.45 
4,513,095.32 

2,892,694.34  7,052,139.79 
3,194,495.29  7,707,590.61 

1.98 
1.90 

7.71 
6.90 

2.88 
2.79 

GREECE. 

The  Kingdom  of  Greece  has  twelve  telegraph  stations.  All  the 
messages  between  the  Greek  and  European  lines  pass  through 
Turkey,  and  consequently  the  rate  is  very  high.  It  is  proposed 
to  establish  a  direct  line  between  Greece  and  Southern  Italy  by 
continuing  the  Corfu  cable  to  Pauras  or  Missolonghi,  across  the 
Ionian  Islands. 

PRUSSIA. 

In  Prussia  the  number  of  messages  transmitted  in  1866,  the  last 
year  of  which  we  have  data,  was  1,964,030,  and  the  gross  receipts 
were  1,275,785  thalers,  making  the  average  cost  per  message 
seventy  cents  in  our  currency.  Prussia  had  in  that  year  a  popu- 
lation of  17,740,000,  and  the  area  of  her  territory  was  somewhat 
less  than  the  New  Eno-land  States  and  New  York.  Distance 

o 

being  regarded,  the  Prussian  rates  were  at  that  period  double  our 
own. 


106 


TABLE  L. 

Statement  showing  the  Progress  of  Telegraphy  in  Prussia. 


DATE. 

Number  of 
Messages. 

Gross  Receipts 
in  Thalers. 

Average  Cost 
per  Message 
in  Thalers. 

1852  

48  751 

114  539 

2  350 

1853  

85  161 

209  944 

2  460 

1854  

116313 

328,506 

2.820 

1855  

152  820 

434  122 

2  840 

1856..  

221  411 

591  038 

2  670 

1857.  .  . 

241  545 

726  517 

3  010 

1858 

247  20° 

730  584 

2  950 

1859  

349  997 

808  521 

2  310 

I860  

384  335 

791  101 

2  060 

1861        

459  002 

875  783 

1  988 

1862  

660*501 

954  550 

1  450 

1863  

877  583 

1  039  961 

1  180 

1864  

1  259  590 

1  1  50  008 

0  913 

1865  

1,527  455 

1  242  489 

0  812 

1866  

1  964  030 

1  275  785 

0  656 

It  will  be  observed  that  the  number  of  messages  transmitted  in 
1852  was  48,751,  and  in  1860,  384,335,  being  an  increase  in  nine 
years  of  nearly  800  per  cent,  although  there  was  no  reduction  in 
the  average  tariff  during  this  period.  From  1860  to  1866  there 
was  an  increase  of  only  500  per  cent,  notwithstanding  a  reduction 
in  the  rates  from  2.06  to  0.656  thalers  per  message. 

Prussia  was  among  the  earliest  of  Continental  countries  to  adopt 
the  electric  telegraph,  and  it  is  still  far  in  advance  of  most  of  its 
neighbors  in  the  practical  development  of  the  enterprise  ^  and 
yet,  with  a  population  more  than  half  as  great  as  the  United 
States,  she  only  transmits  one  sixth  as  many  messages  per  annum. 
Were  the  system  left  to  private  enterprise,  as  in  this  country,  there 
can  be  no  doubt  that  this  enlightened  and  thrifty  people  would 
greatly  extend  the  system,  and  in  place  of  the  meagre  supply  of 
538  offices  she  would  have  upwards  of  2,000,  and  in  place  of 
1,964,030  messages  per  annum  would  transmit  seven  or  eight 
millions. 

RUSSIA. 


European  Russia,  with  a  population  considerably  more  than  twice 
as  great  as  the  United  States,  contains  but  308  offices,  or  one  to 


107 

230,000  of  people ;  and  sends  annually  but  838,653  messages,  or 
one  to  each  80,723  of  her  population. 

Any  person  examining  the  telegraphic  map  of  Russia  will  be  sat- 
isfied that  the  rose-colored  descriptions  of  government  telegraphs  as 
illustrated  in  Russia  are  overdrawn.  The  lines  radiating  from  St. 
Petersburg,  and  extending  to  Warsaw,  Moscow,  Odessa,  Sebasto- 
pol,  Nichni-Novgorod,  to  the  Persian  frontier,  and  to  Kiakhta  in 
Siberia,  —  all  important  military  points,  —  and  with  scarcely  any 
connecting  interior  lines,  suggest  anything  but  a  desire  to  afford 
ample  telegraphic  facilities  to  the  people. 

SWITZERLAND. 

The  situation  of  Switzerland,  in  the  centre  of  Europe,  and  form- 
ing the  pathway  between  nations,  places  her  in  a  peculiar  position 
with  reference  to  the  transmission  of  messages  from  one  country 
to  another.  Just  as  Belgium  is  situated  in  relation  to  intercourse 
between  France  and  Germany,  so  Switzerland  is  placed  in  regard 
to  telegraphic  communication  between  France  and  Italy,  and  Italy 
and  Germany.  Switzerland,  from  many  circumstances,  is  a  coun- 
try in  which  telegraphic  communication  is  eminently  useful.  In 
the  first  place  it  is  a  mountainous  country,  over  which  postal  com- 
munication is  necessarily  slow,  and  conducted  at  all  seasons  under 
disadvantages.  Besides  all  this,  Switzerland,  at  certain  seasons 
of  the  year,  is  a  country  full  of  travellers  and  tourists  from  all 
parts  of  the  world,  who  find  great  advantage  and  convenience 
in  being  able  to  transmit  short  messages  from  one  place  to  another, 
respecting  hotel  accommodations,  baggage  arrangements,  lost  pack- 
ages, horses,  places  in  the  diligence,  and  general  matters  relating 
to  their  route,  as  well  as  business  and  social  messages  to  their 
relatives,  friends,  and  agents  at  home. 

Switzerland  is  in  the  same  position  with  Belgium  in  respect 
to  the  means  of  cheap  telegraphic  communication.  The  railways 
of  the  country  all  belong  to  the  state  ;  so  that  every  railway  is 
available,  without  charge,  for  the  passage  of  wires  along  the  line, 
and  every  railway  official  may  be  employed  for  telegraphic  ser- 
vice, at  the  pleasure  of  the  government,  for  nothing.  It  is 
scarcely  necessary  to  point  out  how  different  must  be  the  work- 


108 

ing  of  such  a  system  from  that  of  the  United  States,  where  the 
railways  are  in  the  hands  of  private  companies,  and  with  whom 
terms  have  to  be  made  for  the  right  of  way. 

NO  ANALOGY  BETWEEN  THE   UNITED    STATES    AND    SWITZER- 
LAND. 

The  analogy  between  the  United  States  and  Switzerland  seems 
in  every  sense  imperfect.  The  telegraph  stations  in  Switzerland 
only  number  252,  or  less  than  the  number  contained  within  a 
radius  of  fifty  miles  in  and  around  the  city  of  New  York. 

The  total  number  of  despatches  transmitted  annually  in  and 
through  Switzerland  only  amounted  in  1866  to  668,916,  whilst  of 
these  probably  more  than  half  were  either  transit  or  international. 
These  transit  telegrams,  of  which  there  are  none  in  our  country, 
involve  a  most  important  difference.  Belgium  and  Switzerland 
can  make  up  the  deficiencies  which  arise  from  losses  on  internal 
communication  by  the  surplus  derived  from  transit  telegrams. 

In  1852  the  average  number  of  messages  per  day,  for  all  Switzer- 
land, was  less  than  ten.  As  the  system  became  extended,  and  the 
people  were  educated  to  its  use,  the  number  of  messages  increased, 
until  in  1866  they  exceeded  2,000  per  day,  approximating,  for  the 
entire  country,  the  number  sent  and  received  daily  by  fifteen 
female  operators  in  one  of  the  rooms  of  the  Western  Union  Tele- 
graph Company,  in  the  city  of  New  York.  Probably  one  half 
of  these  were  transit  messages  passing  through  Switzerland  from 
stations  in  France,  Belgium,  and  Italy,  leaving  about  1,000  messages 
per  da}r  of  inland  business,  which,  divided  among  252  offices,  would 
leave  an  average  of  a  little  less  than  four  messages  per  day  for 
each  office  !  This  is  not  a  very  magnificent  result,  and  is  not  over 
encouraging  as  a  model  system,  which  gives  to  its  twenty-five  can- 
tons ten  offices,  with  an  average  revenue  from  each;  for  inland 
business,  of  only  three  francs  per  day  !  And  this,  notwithstand- 
ing that  the  government  coaches  convey,  without  any  extra 
charge,  messages,  from  towns  unsupplied  with  offices,  to  the  near- 
est telegraph  station. 


109 


TABLE  M. 
Statement  showing  the  Progress  of  Telegraphy  in  Switzerland. 


DATE. 

Number  of 
Messages. 

Gross  Receipts 
in  Francs. 

Average  Cost 
per  Message 
in  Francs. 

1852      

2  876 

3  54  1  95 

1853 

82  586 

197  870  04 

1  55 

1854 

129  167 

208  887  36 

1  62 

1855  

162,851 

251  391.27 

1  53 

1856  

227  072 

319  947.22 

1  44 

1857      

260  164 

369  >?26.01 

1  42 

1858          ... 

247  109 

343  597  38 

1  35 

1859 

286  876 

425  587  57 

1  48 

1860  

303,930 

408  429.04 

1  34 

1861  

331  933 

448  056  05 

1  35 

1862  

373  452 

530  417  50 

1  42 

1863  

456,871 

630,748.26 

1.38 

1864 

514  95° 

6  1  5  3  1  7  00  ' 

1  20 

1865  

59l'214 

726  564  16 

1  93 

1866  

668  916 

684  319  89 

1  03 

1867 

708  974 

775  024  00 

1  09 

It  will  be  observed  that  the  increase  in  the  number  of  messages 
transmitted  in  Switzerland  was  from  2,876  in  1852  to  668,916  in 
1866,  or  more  than  230,000  per  cent  in  fourteen  years,  although 
the  tariff  had  only  been  reduced  33  per  cent. 

SPAIN. 

Spain,  with  a  population  of  over  16,000,000  souls,  and  possessing 
the  advantages  of  forming  the  pathway  between  France  and  her 
African  possessions,  as  well  as  between  Portugal  and  the  rest  of 
Europe,  transmits  a  less  number  of  telegrams  per  annum  than  the 
Dominion  of  Canada,  with  her  3,000,000  inhabitants.  That  this 
insignificant  amount  of  business  for  so  great  a  country  is  owing  to 
government  control  is  evident  from  the  following  royal  decree, 
issued  in  conformity  with  the  request  of  the  Minister  of  State,  who 
says:  "The  petitions  presented  to  your  Majesty  from  different  towns, 
companies,  and  private  individuals  are  so  numerous  and  repeated, 
praying  that  the  advantages  of  telegraphic  communications  should 
be  granted  to  them,  that  the  minister  who  now  humbly  addresses 
your  Majesty  has  lamented  more  than  once  that  the  care  of  the 
government  has  not  extended  that  satisfaction  to  legitimate  wishes 
so  deserving  of  attention." 


110 


ROYAL   DECREE    RELATING    TO    TELEGRAPHS    IN    SPAIN. 

In  conformity  with  what  the  Minister  of  State  for  Home  Affairs 
has  proposed  to  me,  for  the  concession  of  telegraph  lines  and 
stations. 

I  have  decreed  as  follows :  — 

The  districts,  towns,  and  public  establishments,  who  wish  to  form 
new  lines  or  stations,  can  solicit  them  from  the  'government,  which 
will  inquire  into  the  influence  of  the  establishment  of  the  said  lines 
or  stations  upon  the  state  telegraphic  system. 

The  necessary  cost  of  the  lines  and  service  must  be  paid  by  the 
petitioners,  and  they  must  also  give  sufficient  guaranty  for  the  cost 
of  repairs  and  service. 

The  petitioners  will  be  obliged  to  pay  to  the  state  the  difference 
that  may  result  between  the  annual  income  and  the  cost  of  the 
service. 

If  at  the  expiration  of  five  years  the  expenses  exceed  the  re- 
turns, the  line  or  station  will  be  considered  as  property  of  the 
state.  No  line  or  station  can  be  formed  without  the  consent  of 
the  ministers  in  council. 

Service  in  all  kinds  of  stations  and  lines  can  only  be  performed 
by  a  staff  from  the  government  telegraph  corps. 

All  despatches  passing  through  Spain  (including  the  Balearic 
Islands)  and  France  (including  Corsica)  will  pay  the  rate  of  five 
francs  per  message  of  20  words,  no  matter  from  what  telegraph 
office  they  proceed  or  to  what  station  they  are  addressed.  Each 
ten  words  or  part  of  ten  words,  beyond  20,  will  pay  half  the 
amount  of  a  single  message. 

The  cost  of -a  single  message  transmitted  from  France  to  Algeria, 
or  vice  versa,  passing  through  the  Spanish  or  submarine  lines,  as 
also  of  the  messages  between  Spain  and  Algeria,  transmitted  either 
by  land  or  French  cables,  will  always  be  eight  francs.  The  mes- 
sages received  or  forwarded  to  Tunis  will  pay  two  francs  more. 

The  messages  exceeding  20  words  will  pay  an  extra  charge,  in 
accordance  with  the  rule  already  established. 

No  despatch  u'hatever  will  be  delivered  out  of  the  radius  of  the 
locality  wherein  the  station  addressed  to  is  situated,  through  any 
other  means  than  by  post. 


Ill 

Telegrams  addressed  to  localities  where  there  is  no  station  will 
be  delivered  by  the  last  telegraphic  office  to  the  post,  which  will 
undertake  to  convey  them  to  their  destination  as  certified  parcels. 

When  one  despatch  is  addressed  to  several  persons  in  the  same 
locality,  as  many  telegrams  will  be  charged  for  as  there  are  indi- 
viduals to  receive  it. 

The  acknowledgment  of  the  receipt  of  a  telegram  will  be 
charged  for  as  a  new  despatch. 

Prepayment  of  despatches  can  be  made,  but  if  no  answer  is  re- 
turned, or  if  it  should  contain  less  ivords  than  those  paid  for,  no 
return  of  any  kind  will  be  made.  If  the  answer  contains  more 
words  than  paid  for,  the  station  which  sends  it  will  charge  the 
difference  between  the  amount  paid  and  the  corresponding  one 
to  this  new  despatch. 

The  claims  for  delay  or  irregularity  of  telegrams  will  only  give 
occasion  for  future  inquiry  into  the  causes  which  have  produced 
the  irregularity  in  the  service,  for  the  knowledge  of  the  interested 
party,  and  to  punish  the  functionary  who  should  prove  to  be 
culpable. 

Given  at  Aranjuez,  on  the  22d  May,  1864. 

If  there  is  any  special  benefit  accruing  to  the  people  of  Spain 
by  having  the  telegraph  under  government  control,  we  fail  to  dis- 
cover it. 

TURKEY. 

Turkey  contains  twenty-eight  telegraph  stations,  of  which 
twelve  are  open  for  night  service,  nine  during  the  whole  of 
the  day,  and  seven  for  a  part  only.  Constantinople  has  two 
stations  open  for  international  correspondence,  —  one  at  Stamboul, 
the  other  at  Pera ;  the  first  is  principally  confined  to  the  transmis- 
sion of  messages  for  the  Ottoman  government,  and  the  second  for 
that  of  ambassadors  and  private  persons.  In  the  case  of  an  inter- 
ruption of  the  cable  which  crosses  the  Hellespont,  the  Dardanelles 
station  is  removed  to  Ifaled-Bahas,  and  the  despatches  are  sub- 
jected to  an  additional  rate  of  90  cents  for  their  conveyance,  by 
boat,  from  Kaled-Bahas  to  the  Dardanelles.  The  tariff,  upon 
messages  between  Paris  to  any  Turkish  station,  varies  from 
I  2.80  to  $  6.00,  according  to  the  distance. 


112 

The  construction  of  lines  in  Turkey  is  of  the  most  defective 
description,  and  the  materials  used  very  inferior.  The  lines  pass 
over  the  steepest  and  most  inaccessible  hills ;  and  this  state  of 
things  is  made  worse  by  a  very  inadequate  inspection,  by  men  who 
are  both  too  few  in  number,  wretchedly  paid,  and  generally  in- 
competent. Repairers  are  compelled  to  provide  and  keep  a 
horse  out  of  their  pay  of  300  piastres  (113.04)  per  month. 
The  chiefs  of  stations,  and  all  other  employees,  are  Turks,  whose 
lazy  habits  and  incompetency  cannot  be  wondered  at,  when  the 
smallness  of  their  pay  is  considered.  Added  to  these  difficulties, 
the  service  has  to  endure  very  frequent  and  arbitrary  occupation 
of  the  wires  by  the  government,  interrupting,  on  many  occasions, 
business  of  the  most  pressing  nature,  for  the  transmission  of  some 
trivial  communication,  which  would  lose  nothing  by  a  short  delay. 
It  may  be  imagined  that  as  the  service  is  in  the  hands  of  gov- 
ernment, much  depends  upon  the  director-general  of  the  depart- 
ment. Unfortunately,  this  official  is  in  the  unenviable  position  of 
holding  office  on  such  a  poor  tenure  that  it  may  be  said  he 
has  a  daily  apprehension  of  being  turned  out,  and  replaced  by  one 
of  those  numerous  intriguers  who  swarm  about  the  cabinets  of 
the  ministers,  or  work  through  the  more  effectual  influence  of  the 
harem,  —  the  great  bane  of  the  country.  It  has  been  proposed  to 
the  Turkish  government  to  employ  a  large  staff  of  English  in- 
spectors and  operators,  but  the  natural  jealousy  of  employing  for- 
eigners stands  in  the  way.  The  Turks  insist  upon  having  all 
messages  sent  through  in  Turkish,  so  that  frequently,  when  re- 
translated, they  bear  very  slight  resemblance  to  the  original. 

All  the  important  telegraphic  intercourse  between  Europe  and 
India  passes  through  the  Turkish  dominions.  The  effect  of  the 
control  of  the  Turkish  government  over  the  telegraph  is  most 
disastrous,  and  renders  this  important  connection  with  India  al- 
most worthless. 

.Repeated  efforts  have  been  made  by  the  English  telegraph 
companies,  who  have  so  great  an  interest^in  the  successful  opera- 
tion of  these  lines,  to  induce  the  Turkish  government  to  relin- 
quish its  management  of  them,  but  thus  far  without  success. 


REASONS 


WHY 


GOVERNMENT   SHOULD   NOT  ENTER  INTO   COMPETI- 
TION WITH  THE  PEOPLE  IN  THE   OPERATION 
OF  THE  TELEGRAPH. 


THE  foregoing  presentation  of  facts  has  shown  that  there  are  no 
sufficient  grounds  for  destroying  the  value  of  the  investments  of 
the  people  in  existing  telegraph  companies  by  governmental  com- 
petition, the  telegraph  system  of  this  country  being  unrivalled 
in  its  extent,  unequalled  in  its  administration,  and  unparalleled  for 
the  low  rates  which  it  has  always  maintained. 

In  this  country  the  people  have  not  been  accustomed  to  rely 
upon  the  government  to  provide  those  things  for  them  which  they 
are  able  to  secure  by  their  own  exertions.  If  this  principle  is 
right  in  regard  to  one  enterprise,  it  is  also  in  relation  to  all  others ; 
and  if  infringed  upon  in  the  case  of  the  telegraph  companies, 
what  pursuit  will  be  safe  from  governmental  interference  ? 

It  is  undoubtedly  true  that,  were  tariffs  designed  simply  to 
provide  a  revenue  to  support  the  lines,  they  are  capable  of  reduc- 
tion, provided  present  arrangements  with  railroad  companies  and 
others  could  be  maintained,  by  which  the  labor  of  the  one  is  util- 
ized in  the  service  of  the  other.  But  for  this  the  country  makes 
no  demand.  It  recognizes  the  telegraph  as  a  legitimate  enterprise 
for  the  investment  of  the  capital  and  labor  of  its  citizens.  If  false 
counsels  guide  its  development,  public  reprobation  is  ready  with  its 
remedy.  Its  absorption  by  government  would  not  only  be  a  public 
calamity,  but  a  breach  of  the  theory  and  spirit  of  our  institutions, 
and  would  soon  result  in  its  necessary  return  to  individual  control. 

POLITICAL    REASONS    WHY    GOVERNMENT    SHOULD    NOT    CON- 
TROL THE   TELEGRAPH. 

One  of  the  most  serious  objections  to  the  government  of  the 
United  States  assuming  the  control  of  the  telegraph  is  the  political 
8 


114 

one.  In  monarchical  countries,  where  the  sovereignty  is  a  patri- 
mony of  a  particular  family,  and  where  no  change  is  made  except 
by  revolution,  everything  which  tends  towards  the  permanence  of 
the  reigning  dynasty  is  looked  upon  as  in  the  interest  of  law  and 
order,  and  for  these  reasons  the  absorption  of  the  telegraphs  by 
the  government  is  regarded  as  a  proper  and  legitimate  act,  and 
consistent  with  the  public  weal ;  but  in  a  republic,  where  the 
rulers  are  changed  periodically,  and  where,  the  purity  of  the  elec- 
tions is  of  the  first  importance,  the  placing  of  so  great  a  power 
in  the  hands  of  the  government  would  be  a  public  calamity.  It 
might  be  supposed  that  rulers  could  be  elected  who  would  not  take 
advantage  of  the  control  of  the  telegraph  for  selfish  purposes,  but 
the  temptation  to  do  so  would  be  great,  and,  even  if  not  yielded 
to,  the  suspicions  of  the  people  would  be  constantly  aroused,  and 
confidence  in  its  impartial  administration  would  be  destroyed.  In 
every  election  the  whole  army  of  postmasters  and  the  machinery 
of  the  department  is  enlisted  in  the  service  of  the  party  in  power. 
Shall  we  give  it  the  telegraph  also  ?  What  would  be  the  influence 
on  election  returns  ? 

The  censorship  of  telegraphic  correspondence,  always  a  subject 
of  public  disapprobation,  is  generally  exercised  by  all  governments 
which  have  its  management.  In  France  the  control  of  the  tele- 
graph by  government  is  loudly  complained  of,  in  consequence  of 
notorious  abuses  which  result  from  it.  Amongst  other  things,  it  is 
well  known  that  the  authorities  of  the  Bourse,  in  Paris,  have  op- 
portunities of  seeing  every  telegram  which  reaches  or  leaves  that 
city  pn  matters  relating  to  the  stock  exchange  operations. 

THE  POST-OFFICE  DEPARTMENT  NOT  COMPETENT  TO  MANAGE 
THE    TELEGEAPHS. 

If  it  should  ever  appear  to  be  for  the  public  good  that  this  agency, 
so  capable  of  use  as  a  political  power,  should  pass  into  the  hands  of 
government,  it  seems  proper  to  await  such  a  demonstration  of  the 
self-sustaining  capacity  of  the  department  under  whose  control  it 
is  proposed  to  be  placed,  and  such  efficiency  in  that  service,  as 
will  furnish  reasonable  assurance  of  ability  for  the  united  control 
without  burden  to  the  state,  or  lessened  convenience  to  the  people. 
A  department  which  is  still  confessedly  imperfect,  which  can- 


115 

not  even  tell  the  number  of  letters  which  it  transmits  per  an- 
num, whose  receipts  are  unequal  to  the  cost  of  service  by  over 
$6,000,000,*  which  could  not  secure  skilled  labor  in  this  new  field 
except  by  foraging  from  existing  enterprises,  and  which  could  not 
avoid  heavy  losses  at  the  rates  proposed,  is  not  at  present  a  fit 
recipient  of  so  important  a  trust. 

The  Post-Office  Department,  which  already  has  more  duties  than 
it  is  able  to  perform,  instead  of  seeking  to  absorb  the  telegraphs, 
had  better  apply  itself  to  its  proper  task  of  developing  the  corre- 
spondence of  the  country,  and  endeavor  to  make  itself  financially 
profitable  to  the  nation,  instead  of  a  serious  burden. 

That  the  post-office  undertakes  more  than  it  can  perform  is 
shown  by  the  delays  and  irregularities  of  the  service,  and  the 
enormous  and  constantly  increasing  number  of  its  dead  letters, 
which  amounted,  in  1867,  to  over  4,500,000 !  Were  the  tele- 
graph companies  to  deal  with  the  messages  committed  to  them  for 
transmission  as  the  post-office  deals  with  the  letters  committed  to  its 
care,  there  would  be  good  grounds  for  governmental  interference ; 
but  there  are  very  few  complaints  of  non-delivery  of  telegrams. 

It  should  be  borne  in  mind  that  electric  telegraphy  is  a  science, 
and  its  successful  operation  requires  a  thorough  knowledge  of 
electricity,  skill  in  manipulating  the  apparatus,  and  many  years  of 
constant  training  in  the  practical  duties  of  the  business.  Many  of 
the  employees  of  this  company  have  been  constantly  in  the  service 
for  more  than  a  score  of  years,  and  still  consider  themselves  stu- 
dents in  this  new  field  of  practical  science  :  without  wishing  to  be 
invidious  in  our  comparisons,  we  may  fairly  say  that  the  intelli- 
gence and  skill  which  are  ample  for  the  duties  of  filling  a  bag  with 
letters  and  despatching  them  by  horse  or  steam  power,  would  not 
be  competent  to  the  duties  of  successfully  transmitting  an  impor- 
tant despatch  through  the  invisible  agency  of  the  electric  current. 

GOVERNMENT  ASSUMES  NO  RESPONSIBILITY. 

Another  serious  drawback  to  the  value  of  the  telegraph  under 
government  management  is  its  failure  to  make  reparation  to  pri- 

*  The  postal  revenue  for  the  year  ending  June  30th,  1868,  was  $  16,292,600.80,  and 
the  expenditures  during  the  same  period  $  22,730,592.65,  showing  an  excess  of  ex- 
penditures of  $  6,337,991.85.  From  the  report  of  the  Postmaster-General. 


116 

vate  individuals  for  losses  caused  by  the  errors  or  imperfection  of 
its  service.  In  no  country  where  the  telegraph  exists  under  gov- 
ernment control  is  there  any  assumption  of  accountability  for 
errors  or  delays  in  the  transmission  of  messages.  In  some  coun- 
tries they  will  not  even  inquire  into  the  cause  of  delay  or  errors, 
and  in  others,  as  in  Spain,  they  will  only  do  so  for  the  purpose  of 
punishing  the  delinquent  employee,  but  in  no  case  to  reimburse 
the  patron  of  the  telegraph  for  his  loss.  This  failure  to  assume 
any  responsibility  in  the  matter  is  of  great  importance  to  the 
public.  The  amount  paid  by  the  Western  Union  Telegraph 
Company  per  annum,  on  account  of  these  unavoidable  errors  and 
delays,  is  very  considerable.  The  public  would  be  reluctant  to 
leave  the  correct  transmission  and  delivery  of  their  important 
messages  to  the  chances  of  a  government  system  which  is  noto- 
riously defective,  and  which  would  in  no  case  reimburse  them  for 
losses  occasioned  by  errors  in  the  transmission  of  their  telegrams, 
or  failure  to  send  them  at  all.  The  scheme  proposed  by  Mr. 
Hubbard,  owing  to  the  divided  responsibility  of  the  service,  would 
be  even  worse  than  the  absorption  of  the  lines  by  the  government. 
Public  opinion  could  not  reach  the  contractor,  because  he  is  the 
servant  of  the  government,  and  not  of  the  public,  and  it  would 
fail  to  influence  the  Post-Office  Department,  as  it  does  not  itself 
perform  the  service,  and,  because  being  a  department,  it  is  practi- 
cally irresponsible.  How  much  influence,  for  example,  has  public 
opinion  on  the  collectors  of  internal  revenue  or  customs,  or  even 
the  postmasters  of  this  country  ? 

If -despatches  were  left  at  the  post-offices,  or  dropped  in  the 
street  boxes,  as  provided  for  in  Mr.  Hubbard's  bill,  they  would 
have  to  take  their  chances  of  transmission  and  delivery,  with  no 
recourse,  in  case  of  failure,  for  redress  from  any  source.  If  a  de- 
spatch should  fail  to  reach  its  destination,  and  complaint  was  made 
to  the  postmaster,  he  would  reply  that  he  was  not  responsible  for 
its  transmission,  and  would  refer  the  aggrieved  person  to  the  tele- 
graph contractor ;  while  the  latter  would  answer  that  he  was  a 
servant  of  the  government,  and  not  responsible  6to  the  public  for 
the  imperfections  of  his  service.  And  the  result  would  be,  that 
while  the  sender  of  the  despatch  obtained  no  redress,  he  would 
not  have  even  the  satisfaction  of  knowing  which  service  was  at 
fault,  the  post-office  or  the  telegraph. 


117 


THE  PROPOSITION  TO  ERECT  COMPETITIVE  GOVERNMENTAL 
TELEGRAPHS  UNFOUNDED  IN  PUBLIC  NECESSITY,  UNJUST  AND 
DELUSIVE. 

The  proposition  to  erect  a  competitive  governmental  telegraph 
line  between  Washington  and  New  York,  as  described  in  the 
paper  of  Mr.  Washburne,  and  the  bill  designed  to  authorize  it,  is  a 
scheme  founded  upon  no  public  necessity,  unjust  and  delusive. 

It  is  easily  demonstrable  that  the  tariff  proposed  by  the 
bill,  if  adopted  by  the  government,  could  only  be  maintained 
by  large  drafts  upon  the  national  treasury.  It  is  well  known 
that  the  active  hours  of  telegraph  service  are  about  five,  and  the 
ordinary  average  of  transmission  not  over  fifty  messages  per 
hour,  the  general  allowance  being  forty.  Thus  each  of  the  four 
wires  proposed  to  be  erected  under  the  bill  would  be  capable 
of  earning,  at  the  maximum,  five  dollars  per  hour,  or  a  total  daily 
income  of  one  hundred  dollars,  an  amount  unequal  to  the  pro- 
vision of  the  most  ordinary  indoor  service,  to  say  nothing  of  the 
cost  of  management,  repairs  of  lines,  battery  power,  stationery, 
and  many  other  necessary  expenses.  The  annual  cost  to  our 
company  of  repairs  and  inspection  on  this  route  alone  is  $  20,000. 

This  company  denies  the  exorbitance  of  the  rates  it  has 
adopted,  and  which  it  is  now  actively  engaged  in  modifying  so 
as  to  secure  the  fairest  correspondence  to  other  branches  of  labor, 
and  the  utmost  development  of  the  system.  It  therefore  depre- 
cates as  illusory,  as  well  as  unjust,  the  proposal  to  establish  rates 
lower  than  those  which  in  Belgium  have  caused  a  loss  of  one 
third  of  the  tariff  on  each  message  sent,  and  which,  under  the 
management  of  a  department  now  showing  an  enormous  an- 
nual deficit,  cannot  fail  to  prove  perplexing  and  disastrous.  It 
deprecates  also,  as  utterly  illusory,  the  idea  that  under  such 
tariffs  a  product  would  be  realized  that  would  provide  for 
the  extension  of  the  government  lines  to  other  regions.  This 
delusion,  which  makes  it  possible  for  an  intelligent  public  man 
to  predicate  so  absurd  a  result,  has  for  a  basis  that  which  is 
ever  used  to  allure  men  into  schemes  of  promised  wealth.  The 
insane  speculation  which,  thirty  years  ago,  ruined  tens  of  thou- 
sands of  our  people,  by  counting  the  leaves  of  the  Morus  multicaulis 
as  the  products  of  veritable  mulberry-trees,  on  which  delighted 
caterpillars  would  feed,  and  enrich  their  owners  with  untold  webs 


118 

of  native  silk,  was  not  more  illusory  than  that  which  to-day,  by 
showing  the  possibilities  of  each  hour  by  day  and  night,  crams  the 
wires  with  possible  messages  which  will  never  be  sent,  and  esti- 
mates balances  which  cannot  be  earned. 

This  scheme  would  be  unjust  to  government,  by  undermin- 
ing and  perilling  a  business  which  pays  $  300,000  per  annum 
to  its  revenues,  besides  casting  upon  a  nation,  greaUbecause  of  the 
energy  which  has  characterized  its  private  enterprises,  the  odium 
of  initiating  competition  with  one  of  the  most  useful  products  of 
the  national  brain,  before  time  has  been  given  to  complete  the 
design  of  those  who  direct  it,  and  to  fully  illustrate  its  capacity. 

The  policy  and  practice  of  the  Western  Union  Telegraph  Com- 
pany favor  a  reduction  of  the  rates  on  despatches  as  rapidly  as 
the  necessary  expenses  of  the  service  will  admit ;  and  if  the  gov- 
ernment will  abolish  its  tax  on  the  receipts  for  transmitting  tele- 
grams, this  company  will  immediately  lower  its  rates  until  the  re- 
duction upon  the  gross  amount  of  business  done  shall  be  twice  as 
much  as  the  tax  remitted. 

This  would  lessen  the  rates  for  telegraphing  nearly  ten  per 
cent,  and  would  be  a  far  better  plan  for  furnishing  cheaper  tele- 
graphic facilities  to  the  people  than  the  construction  and  operation 
of  government  lines  at  the  expense  of  the  national  treasury. 

THE  TELEGRAPH  BILL  PROPOSED  TO  BE  ENACTED  BY  CONGRESS 
WITHOUT  NATIONAL  EXAMPLE. 

It  must  be  borne  in  mind  that  the  remunerativeness  of  tele- 
graph lines  depends  largely  upon  the  revenues  of  a  few  important 
cities,  without  which  the  enterprise  would  not  have  an  income  suf- 
ficient to  support  it.  To  take  away  the  receipts  of  New  York, 
Philadelphia,  Baltimore,  and  Washington,  with  Boston,  Chicago, 
Cincinnati,  St.  Louis,  and  a  few  others  of  like  importance,  would 
make  it  impossible  for  any  company  to  maintain  itself,  far  less  to  meet 
the  constant  demand  of  an  enlarging  population  and  new  settlements 
for  the  extension  of  its  lines.  This  is  not  peculiar  to  America. 
In  Great  Britain,  where  there  are  2,151  stations,  seventy-six  per 
cent  of  the  entire  receipts  are  received  at  18  stations,  fifteen  per 
cent  at  81  stations,  and  only  nine  per  cent  at  the  residue.  Even 
of  the  seventy-six  per  cent  received  at  the  18  stations,  one  half 
of  that  whole  percentage  was  received  in  London,  and  one  quarter 
from  two  other  cities. 


119 

In  France,  three  departments  collect  4,178,332,  out  of  a  total 
of  7,707,590  francs  per  annum  ;  and  of  this  amount,  Paris  (De*- 
partment  de  la  Seine)  collects  2,794,768.40  francs,  being  more 
than  one  third  of  the  total  receipts  of  the  whole  empire. 

The  Western  Union  Telegraph  Company's  revenues  come  to  it 
in  a  similar  manner.  From  its  3,331  offices  it  derives  its  receipts 
as  follows  :  — 

From    136  offices,     .         .         .         .75  per  cent. 
"      3195       «  ...          25  per  cent. 

Of  these  136  offices,  a  large  proportion  of  their  receipts  is  derived 
from  twelve  chief  cities,  of  which  four  are  on  the  route  proposed 
by  this  bill. 

Government,  by  thus  operating  lines  of  telegraph  over  the 
choicest  and  most  productive  route,  at  rates  below  the  cost  of  the 
service,  and  which  could  only  be  maintained  by  large  drafts  upon 
the  national  treasury,  would  assume  an  attitude  towards  private 
telegraph  enterprises  of  the  most  unjust  and  unexampled  hostility. 

Such  a  partial  experiment  as  that  proposed  by  Mr.  Washburne, 
or  even  by  Mr.  Hubbard,  would  destroy  the  unitary  character  of 
the  service  which  the  Western  Union  Telegraph  Company  has 
done  so  much  to  secure,  and  would  be  a  most  decidedly  re- 
actionary measure. 

Mr.  Hubbard's  bill  to  incorporate  the  United  States  Postal  Teje- 
graph  Company,  and  to  establish  a  postal-telegraph  system,  pro- 
vides for  the  establishment  of  telegraph  lines  to  all  cities  and  vil- 
lages of  five  thousand  inhabitants  and  over  in  the  United  States. 
Were  this  scheme  to  be  adopted,  and  the  government  thus  enter 
into  a  partnership  with  the  new  company  in  the  telegraph  business, 
in  accordance  with  the  terms  of1  this  bill,  what  is  to  become  of  the 
smaller  towns  ?  According  to  the  census  of  1860  there  are  only 
three  hundred  and  thirteen  cities  and  villages  in  the  United  States 
having  the  five  thousand  inhabitants  necessary  to  entitle  them  to 
an  office  under  this  postal  system.  Who,  then,  is  to  maintain  tele- 
graphic facilities  at  the  remaining  three  thousand  eight  hundred 
and  thirteen  small  towns  now  having  offices  ? 

Private  companies,  if  driven  out  of  the  field  by  the  establishment 
of  this  semi-government  competing  line,  could  not  do  it,  and,  as 
this  scheme  makes  no  provision  for  them,  they  must  necessarily 
be  deprived  of  the  facilities  they  now  enjoy.  Under  this  bill  Ar- 


120 

kansas,  Florida,  and  Oregon  would  not  be  entitled  to  an  office  ; 
Minnesota,  Mississippi,  and  South  Carolina  to  but  one  ;  North 
Carolina,  Texas,  and  Vermont  to  but  two  each;  Delaware  and 
Tennessee  to  but  three  ;  Connecticut,  Georgia,  Kentucky,  and 
Michigan  to  but  four  ;  and  Indiana,  Kansas,  Louisiana,  Maine, 
Missouri,  New  Hampshire,  Rhode  Island,  Virginia,  and  Wiscon- 
sin would  be  entitled  to  less  than  ten  each,  while  those  provided 
for  the  whole  United  States  would  be  less  in  number  than  the 
branch  offices  furnished  for  the  convenience  of  the  public  by  the 
Western  Union  Telegraph  Company  at  the  hotels,  docks,  piers, 
and  other  places  in  the  large  towns  alone.* 

The  proposal  presented  to  Congress  is  one  which  the  governments 
of  Europe,  from  which  it  professes  to  draw  its  inspiration,  have 
never  entertained.  No  government  there  has  ever  yet  attempted  to 
engage  in  any  public  work  by  the  destruction  of  the  property  of  its 
people,  except  after  just  compensation.  The  recent  example  of 
Great  Britain  in  acquiring  the  British  lines  of  telegraph  is  eminent- 
ly illustrative  of  this  national  justice.  Neither  cavilling  with  the 
nature  or  condition  of  their  structure,  cheapening  the  value  of  their 
property,  nor  defaming  the  officers  of  any  company,  the  British 
Parliament  doubles  the  valuation  of  its  owners,  and  pays  a  price 
therefor  which  satisfies  the  most  exacting.  In  striking  contrast  to 
this  is  the  enterprise  proposed  to  the  American  Congress  by  the 
Washburne  bill,  which  begins  by  attacking  the  integrity  of  the 
official  management  of  the  existing  system,  depreciating  the  value 
of  its  property,  and  proposing  the  competitive  use  of  a  grand  in- 
vention which  it  refused  to  purchase,  and  now  proposes,  without 
consideration,  to  possess.  In  such  a  project  there  is  no  national 
example  which  would  give  it  sanction  or  respectability,  even 
though,  in  times  of  great  national  peril,  and  amid  the  necessities  of 
despotic  governments,  monarchs  have  at  times  seized  and  made 
their  own  the  profitable  traffic  and  pursuits  of  the  people. 

*  The  Postmaster-General  is  permitted  to  establish  postal-telegraph  stations  at  any 
city  or  village  through  which  the  lines  of  the  contracting  party  may  be  extended, 
though  said  city  or  village  contain  less  than  five  thousand  inhabitants  ;  but  as  the  pro- 
posed company  makes  no  provision  for  the  payment  of  the  operators  or  any  of  the 
expenses  of  such  offices,  while  it  secures  to  itself  the  receipts  for  telegrams,  it  is  hardly 
to  be  expected  that  the  Postmaster- General  would  feel  disposed  to  open  many  stations 
under  such  circumstances. 


APPENDIX 


APPENDIX. 


THE  TELEGRAPH  AND   THE   GOVERNMENT.* 

THE  building  of  telegraph  lines  in  the  United  States,  from  the  date  of 
their  inauguration  down  to  the  present  time,  has  been  overdone.  There 
are  now  too  many  wires  for  the  business,  at  the  prices  that  are  charged ; 
consequently  there  are  few,  if  any,  lines  that  pay  a  fair  interest  on  the 
cost  of  their  construction.  So  great  is  the  cost  of  maintaining  and  oper- 
ating lines,  too,  that  it  is  a  question  whether  sufficient  business  could  be 
done,  as  it  is  conducted  at  very  low  rates,  to  pay  expenses.  In  business 
hours,  for  example,  there  is  a  great  rush  of  messages,  —  say  from  9  A.  M. 
to  3  P.  M.  —  that  is,  between  commercial  centres.  After  3  o'clock  there 
is  comparatively  little  business,  except  what  is  furnished  by  the  newspa- 
pers. Consequently,  in  the  after  part  of  the  day,  and  during  the  night, 
many  wires  an.d  operators  are  idle.  In  order  to  make  business  for  this 
portion  of  the  twenty-four  hours,  the  telegraph  companies  adopted  a  low 
schedule  of  rates  for  night  messages,  but  this  has  been  attended  with  poor 
success.  The  lines  are  mainly  used,  it  is  found,  by  business  men  and 
newspapers.  Business  messages  require  immediate  delivery,  and  are  not 
valuable  except  when  transmitted  and  delivered  during  business  hours. 
Hence  the  reduced  rates  for  night  messages  has  not  created  much  new 
business.  Neither  would  low  rates  for  day  messages  create  new  business, 
unless  the  despatches  could  be  promptly  forwarded  and  delivered.  Low 
rates  for  day  messages,  prompt  delivery  being  insured,  would  undoubt- 
edly largely  increase  the  business,  but  this  would  require  more  wires  and 
more  men.  The  question  then  is,  would  the  income  at  low  rates  be  suffi- 
cient to  pay  for  the  increased  expenditures  ?  Telegraph  managers  have 
decided  this  question  in  the  negative.  There  is,  it  must  be  borne  in 
mind,  a  limit  to  the  capacity  of  telegraph  wires  for  conveying  news. 
Herein  this  system  differs  from  the  postal  system.  There  is,  practically, 
no  limit  to  the  capacity  of  the  railroad  companies  for  carrying  the  mails, 
and,  of  course,  the  profits  of  the  postal  department  are  in  proportion  to 
the  amount  of  business  they  transact.  These  preliminary  remarks  are 
made  in  order  that  the  public  may  the  better  understand  the  proposition 
which  has  been  made,  and  is  being  agitated,  looking  to  the  purchase  of 
the  telegraph  lines  by  the  government,  and  their  operation  in  connection 
with  the  postal  system.  The  pretext  is,  that  the  government  could  afford 
to  reduce  the  tariff  to  a  low  point,  say  one  cent  per  word  for  five  hundred 
miles  or  less,  and  two  cents  for  over  five  hundred  up  to  one  thousand,  &c. 
This  would  make  the  tariff  between  Cincinnati  and  New  York  three 
cents,  whereas  it  is  now  ten  cents,  for  private  messages.  This  is  the  pre- 

*  From  the  Cincinnati  Gazette. 


124 

text,  but  the  real  secret  of  the  movement  is  this.  There  are  two  parties 
who  favor  the  proposition.  One  of  these  has  been  quietly  buying  up 
telegraph  stock  at  thirty  or  forty  cents  on  the  dollar.  They  propose  to 
have  Congress  pass  a  law  authorizing  the  President  to  appoint  three  com- 
missioners to  value  the  telegraph  lines  of  the  United  States  and  provid- 
ing for  their  purchase  at  such  valuation.  Here  is  a  fine  chance  for  spec- 
ulation. It  would  afford  an  admirable  opening  for  the  gentlemen  who 
practise  in  the  lobby.  The  second  party  favoring  the  purchase  is  com- 
posed of  members  of  Congress  who  are  anxious  to  have  the  franking 
privilege  extended  to  the  telegraph  lines.  What  a  splendid  thing  it 
would  be  if  members  of  Congress  could  use  the  telegraph  lines  free,  as 
they  use  the  mails.  But  the  people  would  have  to  pay  for  the  free  busi- 
ness on  the  telegraph  lines,  —  pay  dearly,  too,  as  they  pay  for  the  uses 
and  abuses  of  the  postal  franking  privilege.  Besides,  the  government, 
in  connection  with  the  postal  system,  is  mainly  conspicuous  for  its  mis- 
management. It  does  not  compete  successfully  with  private  enterprise, 
and  never  can  so  long  as  the  abominable  system  of  filling  and  vacating 
offices  is  continued.  The  telegraph  business  is  decidedly  complicated. 
It  requires  skilful  men  to  operate  it.  How  would  it  be  if  telegraph  offi- 
ces were  to  be  filled  as  post-offices  and  revenue  offices  are  filled  ?  We 
need  not  stop  to  answer  this  question.  Besides,  secrecy  is  an  important 
feature  of  the  telegraph  business.  It  is  not  as  carefully  enforced  as  it 
should  be ;  but  what  a  political  machine  the  telegraph  would  become  if 
partisan  politicians  should  get  hold  of  it !  Imagine  the  telegraph  during 
an  exciting  presidential  campaign,  with  one  party  controlling  the  wires 
and  reading  all  the  private  despatches  that  passed  over  the  lines !  There 
would  be  no  secrecy  about  it ;  neither  would  it  be  reliable,  and  in  the  end 
it  would  cost  the  people  more  than  those  using  it  would  save.  Not  one 
man  in  twenty  would  use  the  telegraph  if  rates  were  even  lower  than  is 
proposed ;  and  consequently  nineteen  men  would  be  taxed  for  the  benefit 
of  one.  The  whole  thing  would  be  a  tax  upon  the  people,  without  com- 
pensating advantages.  If  private  enterprise,  with  sharp  competition, 
cannot  carry  messages  between  New  York  and  Cincinnati,  at  ten  cents 
per  word,  and  make  money,  the  government  could  not  do  it  at  three  cents, 
or  at  any  price  up  to  ten.  Nothing  more  certain  than  that.  Besides,  the 
corruption  connected  with  office-holding  and  office-getting,  in  this  country, 
is  sufficient  to  cause  the  people  to  shudder  at  the  mere  proposition  to  add 
fifty  thousand  offices  to  the  already  enormous  federal  patronage.  The 
government  is  staggering  now  under  the  tremendous  load  of  corruption 
consequent  upon  the  federal  patronage  and  the  mode  of  distributing  it, 
and  the  people  must  soon  choose  between  a  reform  in  this  or  a  revolution. 
Let  it  be  first  demonstrated,  therefore,  that  the  government  can  success- 
fully, honestly,  and  economically  manage  the  business  intrusted  to  it  be- 
fore it  undertakes  to  assume  exclusive  control  of  other  branches  of  pri- 
vate enterprise.  But,  as  already  stated,  the  present  movement  is  merely 
a  scheme  to  saddle  upon  the  government  the  non-paying  telegraph  lines 
of  the  United  States,  at  three  or  four  times  their  value.  The  result 
would  be  amazing  corruption  in  the  management  of  the  lines,  the  viola- 
tion of  private  confidence  for  personal  or  political  purposes,  and  a  cost 
to  the  people  for  telegraphing  greater  than  is  now  borne  by  those  who  use 
the  wires. 


125 


POSTAL     TELEGRAPH.  —  EXTENSION     OF     THE     INTERFERENCE 

THEORY.* 

WE  beg  the  advocates  of  the  Postal  Telegraph  scheme  not  to  stop. 
The  justification  of  what  they  propose  to  do,  if  in  accordance  with  their 
theories  of  government,  will  cover  many  other  things  necessary  to  be 
done.  After  having  taken  possession  of  the  telegraph  lines,  and  in- 
creased the  number  of  officers  necessary  to  insure  the  harmonious  work- 
ing of  their  plan,  let  them  turn  their  attention  to  the  Express  business  of 
the  country,  in  which  there  is  room  for  great  reform.  This,  we  are  told, 
is  practically  a  monopoly,  by  the  greed  of  which  the  transmission  of  mer- 
chandise and  valuables  from  one  part  of  the  country  to  another  is  often 
slow,  and  always  expensive.  If  it  is  the  province  of  the  government  to 
take  charge  of  the  telegraphic  correspondence  of  the  people,  surely  there 
is  no  abuse  of  authority  in  undertaking  to  carry,  and  in  making  a  monop- 
oly of  carrying,  their  express  packages  ;  and  the  reasons  which  commend 
this  telegraph  scheme  cover  and  justify  the  extension  of  governmental 
interference  with  the  small  freight  that  the  express  lines  usually  convey. 
We  state  these  reasons  seriatim,  just  as  the  advocates  of  governmental 
telegraphing  rehearse  them.  They  are,  first,  cheapness;  second,  cer- 
tainty; third,  celerity;  fourth,  promotion  of  intercourse  and  traffic  be- 
tween different  sections  of  the  country;  and  consequently,  fifth,  the 
wider  dissemination  of  intelligence.  If  these  are  sufficient,  —  and  no 
promoter  of  the  telegraph  scheme  can  doubt  that  they  are,  —  they  admit 
of  still  wider  application.  Most  of  the  telegraphic  correspondence  of  the 
country  is  of  a  business  character,  and  so  most  of  the  service  rendered  by 
the  express  is  of  the  same  sort.  The  telegraph  and  the  express  are  the 
adjuncts  of  our  great  commercial  transactions  by  which  people  are  fed, 
warmed,  clothed,  and  supplied  with  the  implements  and  raw  material  of 
labor.  There  is,  then,  no  reason  why  the  railroads,  which  are  only  larger 
instruments  of  the  same  kind,  should  be  omitted  in  the  list  of  things  that 
the  government  may  manage  and  monopolize.  It  is  surely  of  as  much 
moment  that  a  train-load  of  flour  or  butter  should  be  carried  with  cheap- 
ness, certainty,  and  celerity  from  Chicago  to  New  York,  as  that  the  de- 
spatch announcing  its  shipment  or  arrival  should  be  sent  in  the  same  way ; 
and  if  we  cannot  manage  the  latter  to  our  satisfaction,  how  shall  we  ex- 
pect to  manage  the  former?  As  it  will  never  do  to  have  a  competitor  in 
this  carrying  trade,  the  government  must  also  take  possession  of  all  the 
canals.  Of  course  these  recommendations  will,  if  adopted,  largely  in- 
crease the  salaried  officers  of  the  country,  and  make  our  political  contests 
tenfold  more  corrupt,  acrimonious,  and  dangerous  than  now ;  but  as  the 
Pennsylvania  editor  said  about  protection  —  "If  protection  is  a  good 
thing,  we  cannot  have  too  much  of  it ! "  —  so  say  we  of  officials,  the  more 
the  better. 

But  we  see  still  larger  fields  that  the  government  may  occupy,  this  in- 
terference theory  being  established  as  the  rule  of  its  relation  to  the  peo- 
ple. As  the  growing  of  wheat  and  the  production  of  meats,  to  supply 

*  From  the  Chicago  Evening  Post. 


126 

the  prime  necessity  of  our  nature  for  food,  are  of  far  more  importance 
than  the  correspondence  which  occurs  in  getting  the  wheat  and  beef  to 
the  consumer  or  than  the  method  of  their  transit ;  as  the  people  must  die 
if  they  have  nothing  to  eat ;  as  farming,  as  now  done,  is  a  careless,  hap- 
hazard business,  pursued  without  the  aid  of  adequate  machinery  or  the 
proper  division  of  labor ;  as  the  cost  of  farm  produce  might,  by  the  uni- 
versal adoption  of  improved  methods,  be  greatly  cheapened,  thus  promot- 
ing the  increase  of  the  race, .and  adding  immensely  to  the  general  happi- 
ness, the  government  ought,  first  of  all,  to  take  the  agriculture  of  the 
country  into  its  keeping.  Then  how  easy,  if  it  should  be  imposed  upon 
by  the  men  who  make  agricultural  implements,  to  turn  manufacturer  at 
some  hundred  convenient  places  and  make  all  the  tools  it  might  need. 
Just  think  of  the  immense  advantage  of  being  able  to  go  to  a  govern- 
ment warehouse  and  get  a  barrel  of  flour  for  half  what  it  now  costs,  or  of 
stepping  into  government  shambles  from  which,  of  course,  the  people 
will  be  fed,  and  getting  a  rib-roast  or  tenderloin  steak  at  a  figure  that 
would  make  our  city  butchers  ashamed.  Of  course,  every  farmer  would 
be  a  government  officer,  sure  of  his  pay,  and  without  the  most  powerful 
stimulus  to  exertion ;  but  if  each  man  who  handles  a  letter  or  sends  or 
delivers  a  despatch  is  to  have  the  livery  of  public  service  on  his  back, 
why  not?  Finally,  as  food  is  useless  unless  cooked,  we  see  the  necessity 
—  still  reasoning  on  premises  which  the  telegraph  men  furnish  —  of  hav- 
ing the  cooking  and  management  of  the  kitchens  of  the  country  turned 
over  to  such  officers  as  the  government  shall  select.  For  doing  this,  just 
as  soon  as  the  plan  of  governmental  telegraphing  is  put  into  operation, 
the  reasons  will  be  entirely  conclusive.  What,  we  ask,  can  be  of  more 
importance  than  that  our  food  should  be  of  good  quality,  healthfully  pre- 
pared, quickly  and  neatly  served,  and  peacefully  eaten.  Put  the  Na- 
tional Telegraph  by  the  side  of  the  National  Dinner,  and  see  how  it  is 
dwarfed  by  the  comparison.  Contrast  the  annoyance  of  a  telegram  over- 
charged, missent,  or  delayed,  with  the  unutterable  horrors  of  indigestion. 
Look  at  our  hotels,  restaurants,  and  private  houses,  and  see  how  cruelly 
the  people  suffer ;  then  think  how  perfect,  how  quick,  and  how  cheap  the 
relief  that  the  government  might  extend.  We  well  know  that,  had  gov- 
ernment cooking  always  been  the  rule  of  the  nation,  the  great  rebellion 
would  not  have  occurred.  The  war  was  the  result  of  the  bad  food  and 
worse  kitchens  of  our  brethren  of  the  South.  It  had  its  origin  in  hot 
bread  and  hog,  which  ruined  the  stomachs,  perverted  the  morals,  and  in- 
flamed the  worst  passions  of  the  South.  As  we  have  already  sacrificed 
half  a  million  of  lives,  and  ten  thousand  millions  of  treasure  to  repair 
the  consequences  of  government  carelessness  in  suffering  national  cook- 
shops  to  remain  unestablished,  we  cannot  make  too  much  haste  in  open- 
ing them  now. 

But  we  have  adduced  examples  enough  to  show  the  absurd  conclusions 
to  which  the  reasoning  of  these  telegraphic  schemers  logically  leads. 
Our  government,  good  as  it  is,  has  objectionable  features  enough  now.' 
The  disparities  in  the  condition  of  the  people  are  due  more  to  the  opera- 
tion of  unjust  law  than  to  differences  in  natural  gifts ;  and  the  great 
source  of  mischief  is  in  the  usurpation  by  government  of  functions  it 
ought  never  to  exercise.  We  do  most  assuredly  need  reform ;  but  we 


127 

shall  not  find  it  in  enlarging  the  sphere  within  which  the  government  may 
act,  nor  in  curtailing  or  circumscribing  the  liberty  of  the  individual.  Let 
us  go  in  the  other  direction ;  and  instead  of  making  the  paternal  rule  of 
Continental  monarchies  the  object  of  imitation,  let  us  extend  the  applica- 
tion of  the  American  idea.  Instead  of  clothing  government  with  new 
powers,  let  us  take  from  what  it  has.  Instead  of  creating  an  army  of 
new  officers,  let  us  dismiss  half  we  have  got.  Instead  of  increasing  -the 
patronage  of  the  executive  and  the  causes  of  political  contention,  let  us 
give  greater  simplicity  to  our  system  and  greater  security  to  the  citizen 
and  the  state.  Instead  of  training  the  people  more  and  more  to  rely 
upon  the  government  to  supply  their  business,  social,  and  educational 
wants,  let  us  give  greater  scope  to  their  individuality,  so  that  they  may 
more  and  more  rely  upon  themselves.  Our  government  differs  from  all 
other  governments  in  the  world  in  nothing  so  much  as  in  its  capacity  of 
letting  the  people  alone  in  their  houses,  their  business,  their  religion,  and 
their  pleasure.  Our  people  differ  from  all  other  peoples  in  nothing  so 
much  as  in  the  fact  that,  comparatively,  they  are  let  alone.  All  that  the 
country  is,  it  owes  to  the  partial  freedom  of  its  citizens  to  go  where  they 
please,  do  what  they  please,  and  think  and  speak  their  own  thoughts ; 
which  freedom,  by  cultivating  strength,  self-reliance,  enterprise,  intelli- 
gence, and  patriotism,  has  wrought  the  work  we  see  before  us.  This 
freedom. is  to  be  still  more  extended  over  ground  which  inherited  abuses 
now  occupy,  and  the  consequences  will  astonish  the  world ! 

No,  no !  Our  government  is  not  a  wet-nurse  for  all  the  schemes  which 
the  ingenuity  of  men  may  invent,  or  which  incomplete  and  half-seen  con- 
siderations of  public  convenience  may  recommend.  It  is  primarily  an 
organization  for  the  protection  of  person  and  property,  and  the  punish- 
ment of  crime.  And  to  keep  it  within  its  sphere,  and  to  disassociate  it, 
as  far  as  possible,  from  the  usual  business  of  the  citizen,  is  to  insure  its 
life.  Leave  to  the  people  all  that  individual  or  corporate  effort  may  do, 
and  they  will  do  it  well.  Leave  to  the  government  the  preservation  of 
order  and  the  punishment  of  crime,  and  the  governed  will  have  no  rea- 
son to  complain. 


TELEGEAPHING  BY  GOVERNMENT.* 

WE  use  the  telegraph  very  extensively  and  pay  it  a  good  deal  of  money  ; 
so  that  there  are  few  whose  personal  advantage  from  cheapening  its  use 
would  be  greater  than  our  own  ;  yet  we  do  not  regard  with  favor  any  of 
the  bills  looking  to  the  establishment  of  a  Government  Telegraph.  Here 
are  some  of  our  reasons  :  — 

I.  The  prevalent  tendency  in  our  day  is  toward  a  further  restriction 
rather  than  an  enlargement  of  the  sphere  of  government.  We  have 
(for  instance)  a  good  many  public  markets  in  this  city,  which  are,  for  the 
most  part,  public  nuisances.  Had  the  city  left  this  whole  business  of  pur- 
veying free  to  private  enterprise,  only  overseeing  it  in  the  interest  of 
public  health,  few  can  doubt  that  our  supply  of  food  would  have  been 
better  and  cheaper  than  it  is.  The  same  is  the  case  with  many  other  at- 

*  From  the  New  York  Tribune. 


128 

tempts  to  serve  or  save  the  citizen  through  the  agency  of  government. 
Most  certainly,  we  would  not  limit  the  sphere  of  government  to  the  mere 
prevention  of  breaking  heads  and  picking  pockets  ;  but  we  should  ponder 
long  before  enlarging  it. 

II.  A  Government  Telegraph  is  usually  proposed  as  an  adjunct  of  the 
post-office.     Our  government  already  claims  and  enforces   a  monopoly 
of  the  business  of  carrying  letters,  charges  its  own  prices,  collects  some 
$  15,000,000  a  year  from  the  people  for  letter-carrying,  and  then  loses 
some  $  6,000,000  a  year  by  the  business.     We  submit  that  it  should  show 
a  better  balance-sheet  on  this  account  before  extending  its  sphere  of 
operations. 

III.  We  never  owned  any  telegraph  stock,  and  expect  to  own  none  ; 
we  are  a  daily  and  heavy  customer  to  telegraphs,  and  expect  to  live  and  die 
such.     We   presume   that   a  Government   Telegraph  would   somewhat 
cheapen  the  cost  of  messages ;  but  the  money  invested  in  establishing  it 
would  never  be  returned  to  the  treasury.     The  clamor  for  a  reduction  of 
charges  (as  now  with  letters)  would  steadily  overbear  any  hope  of  profit. 
Can  it  be  right,  we  ask,  to  tax  the  whole  people  for  the  benefit  of  that 
small  minority  who   send  messages   by  telegraph  ?     Would   it   not   be 
better  to  start  government  establishments  for  potato-growing  on  a  gigan- 
tic scale,  so  as  to  supply  the  poor  cheaply  with  wholesome  and  nourishing 
food  ?     Where  one  wants  cheap  messages,  many  would  be  benefited  by 
having  a  sure  and  ample  supply  of  cheap  potatoes. 

IV.  Government,  in  this  and  other  free  countries,  is  and  must  be 
largely  an  affair  of  party.     The  government  of  this  country  has  been,  is, 
and  must  be,  to  a  great  extent,  the  rule,  of  the  dominant  party.     Would 
it  be  well  to  have  the  telegraph  under  the  absolute  control  of  either 
party  in  an,  excited  Presidential  election  ?     Could  the  outs  safely  use  it  ? 
Could  the  people  implicitly  trust  it?     Remember  how  the  mails  were 
rifled  under   Jackson,  with   the   tacit   approval  of  Postmaster-General 
Kendall,  on  the  assumption  that  it  was  right  to  take  and  burn  Abolition 
documents  if  circulated  in  Slave  States.     Consider  General  Jackson's  and 
Governor  Marcy's  official  recommendations  that  the  circulation  of  such 
documents  be  prohibited  by  law.     We  should  not  like  to  have  the  tele- 
graph controlled,  throughout  the  ensuing  Presidential  canvasses,  by  our 
political  adversaries,  nor  yet  by  our  political  friends. 

V.  The  government  is  heavily  in  debt,  and  its  finances  are  not   in 
good  condition  ;  yet  it  is  bored  and  importuned  for  subsidies  on  this  side 
and  on  that,  —  all  of  them  on  the  pretence  of  public  advantage,  many  of 
them  with  just  grounds  for   such   assumption.     If  the   Northern   and 
Southern  Pacific  Railroads  could  both  be  built  within  the  next  five  years, 
we   believe   they   would   add   five  hundred   millions  of  dollars   to   our 
national  wealth  within  the  twenty  years  succeeding.     We  demur  to  their 
present  construction  by  government  aid,  simply  that  the  state  of  our  finances 
forbids  it.      But  if  our  government  is  able  to  build  telegraphs  where 
they  are  not  wanted,  why  not  railroads  where  they  are  the  very  first 
necessity  of  settlement  and  civilization  ?  * 

We  might  go  on  for  an  hour  longer,  but  let  the  above  suffice  for  the 
present.  We  think  the  government  should  let  the  telegraph  business 
alone. 


UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA  LIBRARY 
BERKELEY 

Return  to  desk  from  which  borrowed. 
This  book  is  DUE  on  the  last  date  stamped  below. 


AUTO  DISC  CIRC 

I 

AUG  28  1993 


03'93 


LD  21-100m-7,'52(A2528sl6)476 


fLAMOUNT 

PHLET  BINDER 

inufaclured  by 
ORD  BROS.  Inc. 
racute,  N.  Y. 
ockton,  Calif. 


YC  25125 


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